The video that we were shown in class and later had to finish on our own was about Rikers Island in New York. There were interviews with men and women who stayed at Rikers and they talked about their experiences there. Rikers island was built in 1650 and was housing over 30,000 people which included men, women, and juveniles. Out of that, about 90% were just there being detained and they were awaiting trial. This video showed the effects of mental illness and violence and how being there has changed many people. The main thing that stuck out to me was the experience of Cathy, the white woman who was an employee of a paralegal however she ended up in Rikers due to money issues and then ultimately missing a court date that she thought was moved to another day. Right away when she first started talking in the video, I knew that she was a changed woman. I could hear the pain and suffering in her voice right away. This made me think about how people that make one simple mistake especially a mistake during a time of need go to places like Rikers and come out changed forever and not in a good way. She explained how she after her third child, her and her family were facing eviction and she wired money to herself that was not hers, it was over $200,000. Almost every word that came out of her mouth you could tell she was fighting back tears. She explained how she experienced things that changed her. Going from career for criminal law to becoming an inmate at Rikers Island all because of a mistake is just so sad to hear. To me. I do not think she wanted this, she was desperate for money however that landed her in jail. It was wrong but it sucks that she had to live through that ugly life in jail for that mistake. She explained how she got raped there and the thing was nothing was done because the “rule” was that you do not snitch and tell anyone what happened. She also saw so much violence first hand like her experience with watching a fellow inmate get her head bashed in. She explained how there was so much blood and that the smell of that blood will forever be with her. I know she made a mistake and she should be punished for what she did however what she went through while there, she did not deserve that. That is the thing about being in jails and prisons, there is so much fear and violence. What I got from this video was how much violence went on in Rikers. I have always know that there is violence in jails and prisons but this just gave me more insight on that. A thing that was brought up a lot by the men in the video was them explain how they had to use violence to protect themselves. The main thing that should be thought about in prisons and jails throughout the world is moving forward and getting better however staying alive and not getting beat up is the main thing many inmates think about on a daily basis while they are in there. The rule of surviving is to be able to fight back because if you show any kind of weakness then you will be someones b****. An example of this was when one of the men talking told us about how other inmates wanted to take their shoes and they let them because they did not want to get beat up however since they gave up the shoes so quickly they would have to give them more and more stuff. If you do not show that you can stand up for yourself then you are weak to everyone in there. It is really sad that violent people do not get help, they just become more or they stay as violent just so they can survive. It is even worse when non violent people like Cathy get put into that environment and have to become violent. I am all for punishment for committing a crime however at the same time it needs to be a calmer environment where people coming in serve their time and learn from their mistakes and become better people. Overall, this video really shed light on life in Rikers and showed the effects of that. -wags002
The experience with Kathy stuck out to me too. It was really unsettling hearing her talk about the violence she saw there. I wrote in my response how you could hear the pain in her voice while she talked about her experiences at Riker Island. I read in an article that this facility has been notorious for its violence and dysfunction for decades. This video really put emphasis on that statement. Riker Island really did change peoples lives. The video talked about inmates being put in " the box" and how they lost themselves while they were in there. It said that the inmates would start doing things that normal people would not do. It was very unsettling watching the video but it was also eye opening too. I agree that people need to be punished for crimes they commit but not this way, this way was very dehumanizing. -ju002
Kathy's experience was very memorable and though it is sad and wrong, I am not at all surprised she was taken advantage of. She was a woman with a successful career and an education, so she had no idea how to gain respect or how to act in the jail. I think the part that really stuck with me is just the aesthetic of Rikers itself. The hearts of the men who told their stories sunk as soon as they saw the jail over the bridge. Jails are not supposed to look welcoming, but just the outside of this single jail could take away any and all happiness from a person. I cannot be happier to hear it get shut down by 2026. -Gamma002
This video about Rikers Island that we watched in class really disturbed me. The video was interviews from men and women about their experiences at Rikers Island. The one thing that all the interviews had in common was the stories about violence. One interview that really stood out to me was Kathy Morse experience. She was the woman that worked as a paralegal but after her third child, her family ran into money issues and was facing eviction of their house. Kathy embezzled over 200,000 dollars from the company she worked for. She then missed her court date that she thought was moved to a different day and a warrant was put out for her arrest. In this video you could tell that Kathy suffered during her time at Riker Island. You could hear the pain in her voice and could tell she was fighting back tears when she talked. The one thing that Kathy talked about in her interview that made me very uneasy was her story about the two women fighting. The way she described the woman bashing the other woman’s head into the concrete floor and the metal bed frame was horrifying. She stated that you could smell the blood and hear the flesh. She seemed very emotional while she talked about this. Kathy said that the smell of blood will forever be with her. She added that the correctional officers just stood there and watched this happen. This honestly surprised me. Later in the video, an interview from another inmate mentioned that the correctional officers were basically serving time too. This means that the correctional officers were not really different from the inmates They were doing criminal things within the walls of Rikers Island, such as selling drugs to the inmates for a higher price. One of the inmates stated that correctional officers would bring in four packs of cigarettes that cost forty four dollars and make 1,000 selling it to the inmates. The inmates also mentioned that the correctional officers would place bets on fights. They would also beat the inmates up themselves. In one interview he said that there was this one time where he was getting beat up for four or five minutes straight and they broke some of his bones. Then the video showed a picture of him after that beating. That picture was really unsettling. That inmate was in a wheelchair for about a month and a half to two months. It is really upsetting to think that someone would do this to another person. Another interview that left me uneasy was of the black women that talked about being sexually assaulted by a group of correctional officers. She stated that she was in her cell and the group of them came in and shoved her towards the back of the cell. She then stated that they pushed her panties to the side and inserted their fingers in her anus. The video said that in 2015, there were over 4,000 documented cases of “use of force” by guards. It is really upsetting that people would go into the criminal justice field for the wrong reasons. Another big part of the video is when the interviews talked about being in segregation. The video said that in 2015, more than 3,000 detainees were “sent to punitive segregation” on Rikers Island. The inmates stated that who lose their minds while you are in the box. You start to lose who you are and start doing things that a normal person would not do. The inmates stated that they would start counting the cracks in the walls, play with feces, make shaped out of the chipped paint on the wall, befriending the insects and rats by feeding them. One inmate stated that he felt like his mind was breaking down because his body was breaking down too due to the smaller portion of food you get while in the box. They would put their milk cartons in the toilet to keep them cold. The stories about these people experience at Riker Island are very dehumanizing. I know that people who do the crime need to be punished in some way, but this is not the way. Riker Island is now closing. An article I read said that this facility has been notorious for its violence and dysfunction for decades. This video really put emphasis on that statement. -ju002
You mentioned how the video distrubed you while watching and I could not agree more. I always have known that there is violence in jails and prisons but Rikers was just awful. It was hard for me to hear about what so many people went through there. I remember a part in the video where an inmate talked about how another inmate got hot water thrown on his face and he took his hands to his face to wipe some it off and the water was so hot that his skin came off when he wiped. It seemed like that inmate was one who just wanted to do his time and get out with no issues and that didn’t sit well with other inmates because he was deemed as weak. It also amazed me that the correctional officers were doing so much bad stuff in there as well. That whole video was so eye opening and I hope no other place it like Rikers. -wags002
One of the points you addressed was that there were over 4,000 documented cases of use of force by the guards. What's even sadder is how many of those uses of force are undocumented. Several of the people interviewed stated that they did not report their attacks or abuse by other inmates or by corrections officers. The culture of fear that has been placed on these individuals undoubtedly accounts for that number being extremely high. Candie was the young woman that was physically and sexually assaulted by the corrections officers. What really struck me with her case is that she spent 3 years awaiting trial and she was acquitted of her charges. She went through pure hell and was never proven to have committed a crime. There are other people like Kathy that committed a nonviolent crime and was put through pure hell. What is even sadder is that Kathy like many other inmates never received medical treatment because of fear of retaliation. Regardless of crimes committed, these are human beings whose lives will never be the same.-zen002
To say that the video on Rikers Island was disturbing is a bit of an understatement. One of the first things that was alarming to me about the Rikers island jail is that 80% of the people that are incarcerated there have not been convicted of a crime. They are either awaiting trial, sentencing or other situations. The length of time spent at Riker’s spans anywhere from 2 months to 6 years. It's a completely different lifestyle. One of those interviewed, Marcel Neal, stated that "Everything is upside down." What is good on the outside is bad on the inside and vice versa. Another aspect that really needs to be addressed is the fact that 40% of those at Rikers have mental illness. The sad thing is that many who don't have mental illness entering will have a mental illness by the time they leave due to post traumatic stress syndrome, depression, and other aspects of life while incarcerated. The thing that strikes me the most is the level of abuse and mistreatment for people that have not even been found guilty. Most of these people are awaiting trial or awaiting sentencing. Many others never committed the crimes that they were accused of but came out of Riker's in worse shape mentally than they ever were before they went in. . The corrections officers should be there to prevent and protect the people as well as making sure that people do you have some quality of life. Violence is such a way of life at Rikers that people have become desensitized to the violence. The gangs seem to rule the jail. In some cases those incarcerated viewed the corrections officers as part of the biggest gang there. The beatings, physical assaults, and sexual assaults by the guards are one of the most inhumane things I have ever heard. Ralph Nunez suffered a concussion, brain injuries and sciatic nerve injuries based upon a beating by corrections officers and was later awarded $150,000 in a lawsuit. The story of Robert Hinton is absolutely heartbreaking. You can only gasp at the picture of his face after he was beaten by corrections officers. He was unrecognizable. He vowed to never return to prison and won $450,000 in a lawsuit. Yet he was killed in 2015 on Thanksgiving Day, days before he was set to receive the payment. Many of those that are incarcerated are set in the mind state that it is hard to be positive when all you can think about is survival. 40% of those incarcerated at Rikers return within three years. Some, like Reverend Benny receive their degrees and went on to be a pastor and a peer counselor. One young lady also struck my heart. Candie Haley was viciously assaulted while incarcerated at Rikers Island. She was awaiting trial and spent three years there. In May of 2015 she was acquitted of her charges. This is someone who was found not guilty of her charges and yet she endured the horrors of Riker's Island. It has to be extremely hard to serve time and be hurt for a crime you didn't commit and then try to re-enter society and resume normal life. After researching more about Rikers Island, I discovered that the New York City council is currently voting to close Rikers Island and instead have four smaller jails by 2026. This came to light when looking at the case of Kalief Browder. Kalief was sent to Rikers and jailed for 3 years for stealing a backpack. He never went to trial and was eventually released with the charges dropped. A few days after being released he committed suicide. If someone commits a crime, by law they should be punished. That is not punishment; it is just plain inhumane and a horrific experience for all involved. The job of a corrections officer should be primarily to make sure that the people incarcerated are taken care of and to prevent fights or other violence. To be complacent with the violence and even participating in it is beyond comprehension. This is something that definitely needs to change. These are human beings and this video provided insight into the people that are incarcerated.-zen002
You mentioned several key important things, the Kalief story on how he was sent there for three years. One point I like is how you shed light on the COs, I totally agree on this. There are making the siutation much worse by allowing this to happen. I agree with on how violence in Rikers is basically nothing to the inmates. It is normal to them and it also helps them survive. There is no excue on treating people like this, and you stated on how at the end of the day they are human beings, that have needs and feelings.-zw002
Watching the video on Rikers Island, gave me some details on how the correction system works. I was sad to listen to those stories, on how they survived being in there. More than 7,500 are held on serious crimes,America it self has the largest population for people being incarcerated. Nearly 80% of inmates on Rikers Island has not been convicted of a crime, they are there waiting for their trails, and waiting to be sentenced. Which is very common for jails everywhere, and the sad thing is that many are in jail for up to two to five years just to there case read. I got to watch on how it felt from riding the bus over the bridge to actually them stepping inside the jail. This was very haunting to listen to, you are taking young boys who has never been in prison. Many name the strip search as being the most hardest thing for them coming into jail. You have fear that is weighing on them, and other inmates coming at them with calling them names like “victim and fresh meat”. That is very scary for anyone coming into a place where they are going to be for months to years. It’s every man for themselves in there, as one man was telling the story on how his friend walk away from in getting his sneakers taking. It wasn’t that he was trying to be phoney or not caring, but simply seeing if his friend could stand on his own. Now 40% if inmates in Rikers Island are mentally ill. Learning in class and even from the sheriff talking about how peoria County has a high percent is nothing new. What really got to me is how they were or is treating the mentally ill while in there. Some were telling how certain COs would pee on them, to me the COs are just as bad or worser than the inmates in the jail. How are you supposed to help certain ones who can’t help the way their minds work by degrading them even more. I got more understanding on how the inmates run the jail. They call it “the house” and would or try to get new inmates to follow them. Violence was often use when it came to thi, because know one wants to wash someone’s underwear or be their yes man. It is easy for one to dismiss this, but its different in there. To me it came off as you having no choice in the matter. Many might think that you have protecting inside because of the COs. They are more of your enemy just like everyone else. Watching the tapes of the force that was used on those inmates weren’t call for. It’s more of a degrading mentality those COs have and treat them as such. Solitary confinement is a use for punishment, for inmates. By the way those men were telling about it, it sounding like pure hell insanity. I have always been against this method of punishment. I’m not saying it is ok not to be punished, but this method this taking it to far. You can be very messed up in the head. Hearing voices and developing certain mental illness that weren’t never there before. It is basically a jungle on Rikers, and some of them men stated doing things they thought they would never do. Certain things like stabbings, and fights, just to prove that they can stand on their own. You have different walks of life coming in Rikers, a mother who had her degree in criminal justice, how ironic is that. By misleading the system she got sent there, and being sexually assaulted and witnessing violence. Even some of the men in the video were innocent serving time, and some just came from toxic backgrounds growing up. One thing is was glad to see at the end is how majority of the current inmates did made something out of that horrific situation. I notice how several of them started or led programs to help former inmates like them, as they got out. It was a big adjustment for them getting out and staying out. Overall this is not a place anyone wants to go, for some it is hard to stay out. The system needs to do better when it comes to how they treat the mentally ill in there, and the COs need to be punished for their actions.It really shows how the jails works and wht goes on in there.-zw002
Hearing those stories about what those inmates shook me to my core, especially the stories about solitary confinement. It's extremely sad in this country we boast about treating people fairly and with respect but turn around and treat people like crap behind prison walls. Closing that horrid prison should be a massive priority for reform. Honestly, that place and its awful practices are far beyond what we can do to save it and I think it’s time to let it go. That place destroyed lives and did nothing to help the people who were there, I say we should close it down for the sake of reform.-OUTATIME002
The conditions at Rikers Island were nothing short of hellish and inhumane. From the corrupt guards, the fighting, solitary confinement and the stories from the people in there really messed with me. Hearing the stories of the people who were in solitary confinement is what really shook me the most. That one guy who told about what he did with the milk cartoon was the story that got to me the most. But I wasn’t just the horrid conditions in solitary that made this place awful, it was the way the inmates were treated, all the violence and the sexual violence and the corrupt nature of the place. I honestly never knew why this place was going to close, primarily because I’ve never heard of Rikers Island until now. But now I fully understand why this awful place needs to be closed for good. The statistics form the documentary really said a lot about the awful nature of the place. The one that got to me was the documented cases of use of force. There were over 4,000 documented uses of force in 2015 alone. I can understand if the guards were doing this to break up fights, but the clip in the documentary shows a guy being thrown to the ground for seemingly no reason. This suggests that the guards are overusing their authority, even the inmates compared the officers to having a gang on their own, because of how violent they could be. Another thing that got to me was the women who mentioned that they could not intervene with fights. That really doesn’t make any sense to me and how even the guards wouldn’t intervene either. Some would even bet on the outcomes of the fights between inmates. I honestly don’t believe anyone will miss this prison when it closes and for the sake of reform, I think it is time to let Rikers Island die. Back to my point on solitary confinement, the story of Devon Washington and his time in solitary confinement. Mr. Washington’s story seemed no different, but I’m glad he was willing to fight the system to make it better. He and three others worked to successfully banned solitary confinement for young inmates, but it came after the suicide of a young inmate, who spent three years in confinement. The city of New York said that they would transfer younger inmates away from Rikers Island for their own safety. Mr. Washington was sent to solitary after an issue with a deputy warden. There is a new push to close the Rikers Island jail and I think it’s for the better. The plan to close the jail is part of a push to reduce the jail population and getting rid of Rikers Island is a great first step. The push for reducing populations is going on all over the nation. Since 2007, the jail populations have been down from 780,200, to 745,200 in 2017. The number of beds in jail that have been full has been reduces to just 81%, down from 95% in 2005. The number of correctional officers that were hired in jails were 225,700 by midyear of 2017. One interesting statistic I found was the amount of time the average person spent in jail. The average amount of time spent in jail is around 26 days in 2017. This is mostly due to the short turnover rate for smaller jails. Jails with an average daily population of over 2,500 have held inmates for longer than jails with an average daily population of less then 100. There were also around 55,900 people who were watched outside of jail. This was made possible by letting inmates out for weekend programs, electronic monitoring, day reporting, rehab programs and others. The number of people being supervised outside of jails has decreased from 72,900 inmates to 55,900. Reform is on the horizon and after learning about the horrid conditions and stories about Rikers Island makes closing that place imperative. We also should still work hard to keep reducing populations even more. Seeing the improvements over the years is good progress, but we still need to work hard with lawmakers and the public to bring positive reform to our system and repair the damage it has caused.-OUTATIME002
I wouldn't want to be an inmate at this instituion. I can only imagine how this settled over time. Just didn't happen over night. With the violence and corruption it seems like you can't escape anywhere with out something happening to you. From getting beat up or to having your money stolen or personal items. If you don't stand up people with just mow you down and keep taking advantage of you. In the video one inmate even explained that inside here brings out a different kind of person then one being on the outside on the street. Navy002
Where to even begin with Rikers Island. It seems like some people are innocent before they are presumed guilty before their case has even been heard. Also, that 80% of the inmates have not been convicted of a crime and are held for long periods of time. Mainly awaiting trial, sentencing, or even dismissal. On top of that, 40% have some kind of mental illness or a substance abuse problem. I understand that due to the temperment of each inmate that the severity of the crime dictates their attitudes along with how they portray themselves in society. The time they stay there are two months all the way up to 6 years. I found it interesting in the case of the one Latin Kings gang leader that he spent over 1500 days in solitary confinement. That has to be some strong will power. But through his mother and a message from a higher power, he found in himself what he had to do to rehabilitate his life through time, patience, and education. Even the sad note with the inmate named Kathy. I have some sympathy for her but like all the other cases that some know what they did was wrong and should have to pay for their crimes. But I do think the atmosphere of the jail, from the video, that this institution needs a major overhaul. Through the corruption and the social atmosphere and relatioships that the guards have with the inmates is overwhelming. One inmate was talking how the guards would get the inmates to fight each other just for their own amusement. Inmates assaulting each other in the showers and cells. But I can understand when locked up the enviroment is controlled and fixed to appoint that the natural need of self pleasure is always gonna be there. However, with the sex and corruption this jail needs fixed. They were saying that there was one guard for every inmate. That makes it a pretty sized jail with a holding of about 7500 inmates. They stated that about 2 million inmates arrive there a year. I can't believe because of the large population that the United States holds the inmate population as the biggest in the world. They were also explaining that some of these people have been in and out of the system for most of their juvenile and adult careers. Because the way the jail is setup that they have their own heirarchy or rank structure. Its a fight to survive . The top inmates are the ones who run the building which was stated as house inmates. As they work there way down from the muscles down to the little man who gets all their personal stuff stolen. if you don't belong to a gang or something you have to prove your intergrity or you will end up being someones buddy. As one prisoner stated, " your either the predator or the prey"! In one handout, the article talked about how the cycle of violence is so high that the mayor was moving inmates from Rikers Island to a prison in Albany and some of these prisoners were younger under the age of 22. They were put into solitary confinement cells for long periods of time. Some mainly for beating up the correctional guards. They were not the best on the block. But very serious crimes, after some attacks the inmates were beaten so severly that later down the road some filed lawsuits against the city for being badly hurt. So some of the ideas to prevent incidents like this happening again that they were thinking of closing the jail and coming up with smaller jails in the different neighborhoods of the city this would have decreased populations and maybe a decline in violence inside the jails. This would also give access for the inmates to have access to their families. Also help with the moral in this system and help the inmate rehabilitate easier as they move down the legal process. Hopefully, this would take care of the lawsuits from the inmates against the city and some kind of reform could happen and make things function a little more efficiently. But lastly, one thing that did make a change was that solitary confinement for people under 22 would be outlawed. Navy002
I also made the point that the faculty of Rikers Island and the council who oversees its actions are treating innocent people as if they have already been proven guilty. I say innocent not in the sense that they didn't do it but simply because they haven't had the right to a fair trial like most people get within a short amount of time elsewhere.It's hard to imagine the treatment that you received there and know in your own head that you haven't committed a crime. I stated that its enough to make someone go insane and actually commit a crime and I believe in that 110 percent. FIRE002
I said I would of felt them same way as the inmates that are going to jail. It would feel dark but it is still daylight outside the bus. I felt really sorry for the ones that got treated so poorly. I believe that no one should be treated like that. Also no one should follow other people commands that are inmates. There should be no fighting in the jail. I am glad solitary confinement for juveniles has stopped because no kids should be in that situation. I am glad the people that were inmates in Rikers Island had bettered their lives to not be in jail again. Some of them wanted to better prisons and jail. I believe they should just close it them fixing it. Softball002
Rikers Island, in my own opinion is basically hell on earth for anyone committee of a crime in New York. Its old, its dirty, and most will say its just plain brutal. Rikers Island is part of the Corrections system in NewYork and the irony of that statement is that 80 percent of the people that are locked up there, are simply awaiting trial. Most of them haven't even been proven guilty in a court of law and they are sitting on the cold concrete locked behind steel bars for crimes they know they didn't commit. That's enough to make someone commit a crime simply by going insane. I dont think its right to just throw someone in such a horrid place without knowing for certain they are guilty. Of course jail isn't going to be the nicest place on earth with home cooked meals and heated mattresses, but no one who is awaiting trial or serving a misdemeanor sentence should have to do their time in such filth. The irony of the whole system is that you bring a young kid in off the streets. He's a green hand and mightve just stole his first candy bar or sold his first gram of dope. You toss him in a dirty and cold cell with a couple other guys who are also probably serving petty offenses and it all turns into a crock pot of mental instability and motivation to commit more crime. You start to see the physical and mental health deteriorate right in front of your eyes and before you know it, you have created a monster. People should not be going to places like these for petty offenses because it is proven that they will come out a lot more dangerous than when they went in. Forty percent of all inmates that are held at Rikers Island have been diagnosed with a mental disorder and that's only the ones who stepped forward and admitted that they have a problem. Most of the time, they are thrown some pills everyday and expected to get better vie that route but that isn't the case. As stated in the video, most of the people in there just need a person to vent to and to hold onto for salvation during such a troubling time in their lives. Instead, they are being poisoned and the taxpayers are the ones who end up paying for it in the end. It's a never ending merry go round of trouble and no one can seem to wrap their minds around that concept. There's literally years and years of data to prove it but it is so much easier to turn a blind eye. Another ironic topic when it comes to Rikers and its failed system of corrections is the amount of people who are there, simply because they can't make bail. Failure to make bail results in the continued holding of a person until said money is brought forth for the freedom.Over 50 percent of inmates at Rikers are only there because they, nor their families have the money to post bail and set them free. In return, the taxpayers who are paying for this island to “correct” inmates are only paying the jail thousands of dollars to house the individuals who couldn't scrounge up 500 dollars in order to be released. Most people who are committing petty crimes are doing so simply because they are hurting for money so i'm not sure where the corrections system though they could squeeze money out of inmates. Now i'm not saying that all the prisoners in there need to be cradled and rocked to sleep at night. Some of them are monsters who are awaiting trial that need to be in places like that for the rest of their lives. They lived a life of filth and disrespect and quite frankly that's how they deserve to live out the rest of their days. Locked away without the opportunity to harm anyone or anything else. On a brighter note, there have been movements towards the complete shutdown of Rikers for good. According to multiple sources, the failed island is set to be completely closed forever by the year 2026. FIRE002
After Watching the documentary Rikers Island Jail is the last place I would ever want to end up. When you look at the statisitics and see that 80% of people being held there haven’t even been proven guilty yet is just absolutly crazy. How can you have most of your inmates techinally be innocent. When it comes down to it, the poor are getting the worst of it. Considering the fact that 50% of the inmates there are still there just because they or their family can’t afford bail. Most of the time bail is less than $1,000. To me this is just problematic, because why would you hold someone in jail for less than $1,000 when it’s going to cost more to hold them there in the long run. -CRJB002
Rikers Island is definitely hell on earth. There are people being put into jail that are innocent and doing at least 2 years here. It is very heartbreaking to know Rikers Island living conditions were very poor. Inmates slept in grim, and feces. Even though these people committed horrible crimes, they still should not be dehumanized. What stood out the most to me is that over 50% of inmates at Rikers Island families don't have the money to post bail. That is very surprising to me. I think that holding someone in jail for $1,000 or less is extremely ridiculous.-Jas002
Before watching the Rikers Island American Jail video I have never heard of this jail before. Rikers Island is a large jail located on an island between Queens and the Bronx. A typical day at Rikers Jail has at least 7,500 inmates. Having 7,500 people on an average daily capacity is massive especially for a jail. Throughout the whole video I was in awe at just how terrible the treatment in this jail was. One statistic that I found very speechless was the fact that nearly 80% of detainees on Rikers Island haven’t been committed of a crime yet. I don’t understand how someone can be detained when they aren’t found guilty. The jail population is very poor considering the fact that half of the people in theirs bail is less than one thousand dollars. The violence talked about throughout this video is jaw dropping. When a new guy is placed in there he is automatically targeted for being fresh meat. One guy was in there with one of his friends who has already been in there for a little while, and as soon as he came in he was jumped by two guys for his shoes. His friend didn’t help him while he was getting jumped, because they had to make sure he could handle himself before they stick up for him. If the new inmates don’t stick up for themselves they become an easy target by the rest of the prison population. These guys are called the dummies, and they are forced to clean other inmates clothes, give other inmates their phone calls, give them any food from the cafeteria that they want, and really do anything that the other inmates want them to do. In the Rikers Island prison gangs are formed and if you don’t join a gang when invited the gang members will jump you. If you fight back and earn your respect you won’t have to be apart of a gang and will be able to do as you wish. These guys are the floater types, because they have earned everyone's respect to the point where they don’t get messed with, and they also don’t have to associate themselves with anyone. The overall violence inside the jail really shocked me. Every single inmate that talked throughout the documentary all talked about the violence inside the jail. This kind of violence shocked me, because I assumed that jails wouldn’t be too violent considering the fact that they are holding people for offenses less than a year. All the inmates must handle their own problems, because the second they go leave to talk to the officers they will be targeted so much worse. Even though these inmates are either bleeding or bruised up, when they are asked if they need medical attention they must say no. If inmates agree to medical attention they will be looked at as a weak snitch. When these inmates come back from medical attention they will have more people coming after them because they look like a snitch. Throughout the documentary something that really came to my attention was how almost all of the inmates on Rikers Island would have some kind of weapon to defend themselves. People would be able to make homemade knives by ripping off pieces of a fan. Other inmates would have razor blades, and weren't afraid to use them. One story throughout the documentary was an instance where an inmate who didn’t want to live in a certain part of the jail anymore so he told the officers. This man could very well fight he just wanted to be left alone and attend court. The other inmates on Rikers Island knew that he was moving out and started to get suspicious. One of the suspicious inmates took a cup and filled it with hot water and went up to him and splashed it all over his face. This caused the man's skin to instantly just burn off. I don’t understand how these inmates can get ahold of so many different weapons. After watching this documentary on Rikers Island Jail I can definitely see why so many people wanted to shut down the jail. Inside the jail was very disturbing, whether it be the dirtiness of the violence the jail was a very distressing. -CRJB002
After watching this video it put it into perspective how bad some jails can be. It is crazy that 80% of inmates had not been convicted and they were being held for trial because they could not pay bail. I do not think it is fair at all and it is still a problem today. I can not believe some of the stories that were told, like the man that had hot water thrown in his face and he peeled his face off. Those kinds of stories make your stomach turn and you wonder how someone could do that to someone else. It is crazy how malicious people can be. -wb002
Rikers Island is a prison located in Newyork. This jail is home of the largest correctional institutes in the United States. There are about 9,000 correctional officers. Most of the people incarcerated here are, pretrial detainees, remained on bail or remaining in custody. The price for an inmate yearly is 209,000. This jail is known for violence, and neglect of inmates. There were several people who told their told stories about their experience at Rikers Island. 80% of the people who stay at Rickers island did not commit the crime they were accused for. One person who caught me by surprise was a man by the name of Damion James Stapleton. Mr. Stapleton is a black male who grew up in a very poor community, who’s mom was on drugs when he was younger. His mom also left him and and his younger siblings at a hospital. Damion was one of the hundreds of inmates who suffer from a mental disorder. 40% of people that are in Rikers Island suffer from some sort of mental disorder. Sadly, damions disorder lead him into jail. Another former inmate that was interviewed was Marcel Neil. He was incarcerated very young at the age of 14. During his first night stay, he had to fight for his life. Inmates tried to steal his commissary, and he had to stop it somehow. He described the living conditions as very nasty. One thing that stood out the most to me was when he said “Befriend people to learn their weakness”. A female former inmate that stood out to me was a lady by the name of Kathy Mors. She was a family woman who lived in a middle class neighborhood. She graduated college with a Bachelor's degree in criminal justice. She was sent to prison because she got caught wiring a large amount of money to herself. She was stopped by police, and taken into custody. Her stay at Rikers island was very traumatizing. She said that she was labeled a snitch to the other inmates, and they took advantage of it. took everything from her including commissary. Her husband would put money on the phone, and buy her things. Everything was taken by the inmates. Another inmate in rikers island that stood out to me was Berry Cambell. He started using drugs at the age of 8. By the age of 12 he committed a robbery. He said that he grew up fighting everyone. His mom sent him away, because she couldn't handle him anymore, he was sexually abused in foster homes. He never got any real help as a child, and was thrown into the criminal justice system. All of the former inmates said not only did the inmates fight, the correctional officers abused the inmates. Brutally beating them, and leaving them the urinate on themselves. In 2015 more than 3000 detainees were sent to “punitive segregation” on rikers. This can be very depressing for inmates. Rather is 2 days or 100 days, being segregated from other can drive you crazy. You tend to lose who you are. Playing with feces. Inmates said little by little their sanity is being chipped away very slowly. Being released from prison is basically a rebirth at life. Looking at the former inmates faces when telling their story made them extremely happy. They said that it was very hard to adjust to the real world. Being around lots of people was very challenging, taking showers, and even sharing food can be very difficult. It was very surprising to me when they said even they used violence to solve small problems. At the end of this documentary mainly every inmate got a job in the criminal justice field. Either working as a correctional officer, or even a counselor for kids in trouble with the law. In conclusion, I love how everyone told their story about rikers island. There were black, white , hispanic, men and women incarcerated. In this jail. Each and very ones story touched me in some way. I think that the system is definitely designed for inmates to return, especially if they are going back to the same community. I learned a lot while watching this documentary. Everyone deserves a second shot at life. -Jas002
I find it ridiculous that Rikers Island is known for the violence and neglect there and that it is known that the correctional officers do what they do. There seems to have been very little done to fix this problem and the only other option seems to be to just close it down entirely. Jail is a very different reality than life within society as you said and I am glad that the former inmates have been able to adjust and find a new direction in life. I hope more will be done to help stop corruption in the system and to help inmates and former inmates transform their lives into something better. -arm002
According to the video“ America has more people incarcerated than any other nation in the world." This means that we put more people in prison or jails than keeping them out on the streets or putting them in rehab to get help. The video said it is two million inmates a year that is being incarcerated. I think this too much because some of them could not be guilty of a crime but they have to go through the system until they are proven guilty of a crime. In the Rikers Island jail there are 7,500 inmates that are held there. If you don’t know where the jail is at, I will tell you. The jail is in New York City in the East river. The island is connected to the mainland by a single bridge. This means there is one way in and one way out of the jail. The jail is known for violence. On the video, one person said when they were crossing the bridge it felt like darkness but outside the bus it was still daylight. I would have felt the same thing because I don’t know if I would see the people that I love outside of the jail. 80% of the inmates at Rikers Island have not been convicted of a crime. This means that they are innocent till proven guilty in a court of law. They are just waiting for trial, sentencing or dismissal. The stay in the jail is less than 2 months but some have waited 2 to 6 years in jail. Some of the inmates that are in there got arrested and didn’t do that crime that the officers arrested them for. One of the examples in the video, the guy was young and heading to school. When he was walking to school, he decided to go to the park to see who was there. When he got to the park the two officers stopped him and accusing him for robbing someone that was hurt. This kid in mind was confused because he didn't robbed someone. One of the officers in the car stuck his head out of the car and said“ he is the one arrest him." The officers in that act was very wrong. They should of stopped him and asked if he saw anything that happened than discriminating that he was the one that hurt the other guy by robbing him. Half of the inmates that are there cannot afford bail that is below $1000. The reason why is because they are usually poor in the community. Some of the inmates said when they go to jail, it looked horrible inside. The walls were painted battleship grey, smelled bad, the other inmates was staring at the new inmates and there was dust all over. Some of the new inmates does not pass the first door. I believe they are scared to be in there. I really don't blame them. The older inmates that are in there will steal things from the new incomers to see if they will stick up for themselves. If they do then they won't mess with them ever again. At the jail there was 40% of inmates that was diagnosed with mental health. The other word for this is mental illness. The inmates that was diagnosed with this horrible health was treated horribly. The other inmates start beating them up. There are 2 or more inmates that runs the jail house. There are different categories on the podium. There is the top person that controls everything, the team is the enforcers, designated person is the people that control the day room, rock in spot are the ones that do whatever they want to do and then the last ones are the day room dummies. These are the ones that give up everything that they have including phone time. I believe you start as a day room dummy then work your way up the podium. In this jail you have to fight to survive. This is so horrible that you have to fight. We shouldn't have to do that. After the whole situation in 2015, officials are debating on fixing the system or closing it. I believe they should close it because it would take a long time to fix the system that was horrible in the Rikers Island jail. Softball002
I knew very little regarding the Rikers jail before watching this video. I like how you pointed out how America has more incarcerated than any other nation. Obviously our correctional facilities are failing. Rikers is one tough place for anyone, and most cannot handle the issues that come with. It is baffling the amount of people just being held in that hell hole, just awaiting a conviction. So many are just stuck, sadly because they cannot afford the bail to get out. It is punishment enough being held in a cell and being stripped of your freedom. What goes on inside of Rikers is a disgrace to humanity. -KF002
Before watching this video I knew very little about the jail. I knew it was a huge jail in New York. I knew that is had a pretty bad reputation and that it isn't somewhere you would want to go. While watching this video I learned that nearly 80% of the inmates were being held for trial and had not been convicted of a crime yet. Some have waited years for their trial. All of the people in this video were talking about how it was the worst place ever. They described the smell, look, and feel of the prison. They talked about getting strip searched and how intrusive it was for them. It was a free for all with all the inmates. I found it extremely interesting how one man talked about going to Rikers with a friend of his. The friend had been there several times and they were in the day room and the friend got up while a couple of guys jumped him for his sneakers. The friend came back and said that he had to see if he could stand up for himself before they could stand up for each other. It was a Rikers test. Almost half of Rikers Island has a diagnosed mental disorder. Most inmates in Rikers were animals. They would mentally, physically, and sexually abuse other inmates. Marcell Mill said that everything right outside was wrong inside and everything wrong outside was right inside. It was a complete 360 from jail to the outside world. There was a totem pole that Rikers inmates would follow. Correctional Officers were corrupt. They would let inmates get jumped and not do anything about it. You can not show weakness in jail because they will take advantage of you. All of these people talked about how the people you think are your friends will stab you in the back. They would watch you and learn your weaknesses so they could jump. Violence rules, predator prey, you needed a weapon to survive Rikers. If you didn't have a weapon or would not be violent you would get taken advantage of and have to wash underwear, give commissary, do whatever they tell you to do. One man was cut in the face and he told the correction officers he didn't need medical attention because in there you were not allowed to tell anyone anything. You can't report anything because you handle things yourself on the inside. Gangs were a huge problem in Rikers. Gangs ran the jail, Latin Kings and bloods were the biggest gangs in there and if you weren't apart of one or another gang than you had to gain a lot more respect from everyone. It didn't matter if you were a CO or an inmate, both were doing time. Correctional Officers would bet on inmates and they would smuggle drugs and other things in for the inmates. There was a lot of money going around, a $11 pack of cigarettes was $200 in jail. Rikers Island was a different type of jail. Inmates would fight on the daily and would abuse each other in every way possible. The biggest rule in jail is killed or be killed. You are on edge at all times, if you did not stand up for yourself that you would get beaten and have everything taken from you. You had to be violent to get any sort of respect. The only people in there that could protect you were the correctional officers but they were corrupt too. They would let you get beaten and if you snitched you would lose their respect too. Most jails are a more mild version of Rikers. The story some of the ex-convicts were telling were horrific. The way that some people were beaten or abused was not human at all. The one thing that stood out the most to me was when a man said, wrong is right and right is wrong in there. It was like a different world when you got inside. You could not trust anyone and had to be selfish in almost every aspect. If you were not selfish you would be taken advantage of. I loved this video it made me learn a lot more about Rikers than I knew. -wb002
After watching the video and reading the article on Rikers Island, I have a different perspective on the whole situation. According to the video, Rikers Island has a daily population of about 7,500 people. If you think about that compared to what we had learned about the Peoria County Jail, it is unimaginable to me. Peoria County Jail has a daily population under 300 people, but it makes sense since New York CIty is a much more populated area. Eighty percent of the inmates at Rikers Island have not been convicted of any crime and over fifty percent cannot afford a bail which is usually under a thousand dollars. A lot of people inside of jails are not extremely violent offenders either which makes the whole situation worse. The conditions in this jail are very poor and it is sad that these people have to sit and wait all because they cannot afford it. The conditions at Rikers as described by the former inmates in the video include inmates being held for long periods of time awaiting trial, a lot of violence, abuse from both correctional officers and other inmates, sexual abuse, unnecessarily long sentences of solitary confinement, and more. Jail is not supposed to be the coziest or nicest place ever, but this place has got some huge issues. I had no idea that Rikers Island was such a big problem until now, but knowing everything I know now, I totally believe the jail should be shut down for good. The video had said that forty percent of the inmates were diagnosed with a mental illness. We know that a good majority of people in jails have some sort of treatable mental illness, so there is probably a whole lot more than forty percent. One of the ladies in the video stated that there was no one for the inmates to talk to for counselling. One of the men explained his childhood and how he was in foster homes, addicted to drugs at a young age, and had to grow up fighting. It is important for jails to have counsellors and trained professionals due to the high number of people with mental illnesses, poor upbringings, and addictions there and the lack of counselling just adds to the poor conditions. One of the women, Cathy, had interesting takes during her interview. She was one of the more memorable interviewees mainly due to the fact that she seemed very emotional during her interview and because she had a bachelors in criminal justice and used that degree to work with people returning to society from imprisonment. She really showed that anyone can make mistakes and go to jail. One thing she said was interesting. She said that if there was ever a fight happening between inmates, the other inmates could not interfere and try to stop the fight. If they did interfere they would be punished. I found this interesting because in the story she told one woman was being severely injured and all the others were screaming and trying to stop the fight without getting physically involved. I would think in that situation it would be instinct to jump in and get the two people away from each other, but it shows you how much imprisonment and the fear of punishment can change people’s behaviors. Most if not all of the former inmates interviewed had told of some change in their behaviors. Some had never had to fight before or did not want to fight, but in order to hold your ground in there you had to. The guards were not going to help you and prevent the violence from happening. It is definitely not okay for someone to get thrown into somewhere and fear for their safety every second and feel the need to defend themselves especially when there are people paid to guard you. Every one of the former inmates was changed the moment they stepped into Rikers Island and I am thankful that they were able to make it through and be able to share their stories. I hope there is an end to the injustice done to the inmates in that jail. -arm002
It was really sad and heartbreaking to watch and understand what they go through. I liked how you worded your paragraph and everything you said. you made it flow and gave us a clear understanding of the video. SH002
The lady in the video did stand out a lot because of her Bachelor's Degree in criminal justice. She made a stupid mistake that code her time away from prison and other issues. She rerouted a check of 200,000 to her account instead of someone else account for who it was meant for. She did this because her house was going into foreclosure. It’s sad to hear her story because of all the things she witnessed and experienced first hand. She was sexually assaulted in the shower and beat on. Her whole life was changed because of this. Batman002
I do agree with your comment as well. Here we have a lady whom has gone to college, done society based things that you need to do to make it in life, and by making a mistake, was put into the jail where the same people she was attempting to help, were. She then made decisions that landed here into the jail and was forced to face the same struggles with sexual abuse, mental abuse and even physiological abuse. You see them at the end of the doc, all family and even her residential family has now separated herself from her and it only makes her struggles worse on the outside.
I do agree with your comment as well. Here we have a lady whom has gone to college, done society based things that you need to do to make it in life, and by making a mistake, was put into the jail where the same people she was attempting to help, were. She then made decisions that landed here into the jail and was forced to face the same struggles with sexual abuse, mental abuse and even physiological abuse. You see them at the end of the doc, all family and even her residential family has now separated herself from her and it only makes her struggles worse on the outside. -as002
In class, we watched a video, on Riker’s Island which was in New York, then we finished the video on our own. There were interviews with men and women who stayed at Rikers and they talked about their experiences there. Rikers island was built in 1650 and was housing over 30,000 people which included men, women, and juveniles. Out of that, about 90% were just there being detained and they were awaiting trial. This video showed the effects of mental illness and violence and how being there has changed many people. That is the thing about being in jails and prisons, there is so much fear and violence. What I got from this video was how much violence went on in Rikers. I have always known that there is violence in jails and prisons but this just gave me more insight on that. A thing that was brought up a lot by the men in the video was them explain how they had to use violence to protect themselves. The main thing that should be thought about in prisons and jails throughout the world is moving forward and getting better however staying alive and not getting beat up is the main thing many inmates think about on a daily basis while they are in there. There were many statements that were said and really stuck on me, they were; “Stand up for yourself, before someone else stands up for you.” “Show weakness, you lose. You’re gonna die.” And “Become friends with people, then find their weaknesses”. They had me stuck on them ever since they were stated in the video. We talk about abuse in jails and prisons but we don’t usually expand on it. in the video a black woman that talked about being sexually assaulted by a group of correctional officers. She stated that she was in her cell and the group of them came in and shoved her towards the back of the cell. She then stated that they pushed her panties to the side and inserted their fingers in her anus. The video said that in 2015, there were over 4,000 documented cases of “use of force” by guards. It is really upsetting that people would go into the criminal justice field for the wrong reasons. The beatings, physical assaults, and sexual assaults by the guards are one of the most inhumane things I have ever heard. Ralph Nunez suffered a concussion, brain injuries and sciatic nerve injuries based upon a beating by corrections officers and was later awarded $150,000 in a lawsuit. The story of Robert Hinton is absolutely heartbreaking. You can only gasp at the picture of his face after he was beaten by corrections officers. He was unrecognizable. He vowed to never return to prison and won $450,000 in a lawsuit. Yet he was killed in 2015 on Thanksgiving Day, days before he was set to receive the payment. Many of those that are incarcerated are set in the mind state that it is hard to be positive when all you can think about is survival. 40% of those incarcerated at Rikers return within three years. One young lady also struck my heart. Candie Haley was viciously assaulted while incarcerated at Rikers Island. She was awaiting trial and spent three years there. In May of 2015 she was acquitted of her charges. This is someone who was found not guilty of her charges and yet she endured the horrors of Riker's Island. It has to be extremely hard to serve time and be hurt for a crime you didn't commit and then try to re-enter society and resume normal life. After researching more about Rikers Island, I discovered that the New York City council is currently voting to close Rikers Island and instead have four smaller jails by 2026. This came to light when looking at the case of Kalief Browder. Kalief was sent to Rikers and jailed for 3 years for stealing a backpack. He never went to trial and was eventually released with the charges dropped. A few days after being released he committed suicide. If someone commits a crime, by law they should be punished. Now 40% if inmates in Rikers Island are mentally ill. Learning in class and even from the sheriff talking about how Peoria County has a high percent is nothing new. SH002
1 OF 2 Rikers Island Jail is located in New York. Rikers is hell on earth, notorious for its culture of violence. On an average day, the jail is holding roughly 7,500 inmates. Out of all the inmates, around forty percent are diagnosed with a mental illness. After hearing what the people inside the jail go through, I am surprised that everyone is not suffering from some sort of mental illness. Nearly eighty percent of the people locked up, are not even convicted of a crime yet. Around half of the inmates can not afford the “low” bail set close to one-thousand dollars, due to bail laws. Upon entering the jail, it is riddled with the nasty smell of dirt and grime mixed with bleach. Everything is gray, the walls, the floor, top to bottom. The interior is described as “medieval”. Through the gates the adults can see the juveniles. Inmates are treated inhumane, the guards can and will strip search and frisk at any time in front of the others, with no absolute privacy. Not only are the inmates treated with violence and disrespect but so are the correctional officers. The employees, guards, and inmates do not get the same treated but all treated horrible in their own way. The workers at Rikers get brutally beat up, spit on, and treated badly too. Everyone is the jail is fair game when it comes to mental issues. There is nothing bigger than violence and chaos in this jail. Inmates and guards will deprive food from inmates. Either the guards are punishing them or the inmates are stealing their food and bullying them. Each house in the jail has team enforces, day room controllers, the rocking house, and day room dummies. The team enforcers, enforce the rules. The day room controllers, oversee the day room and control the activities going on. Day room dummies are the people that get walked all over, they have to ask for permission to do anything, and give up their money and things to others. If you do not “hold it down” people are going to take advantage of you. Inmates have to prove themselves to others in order to keep themselves out of harm. They have to show they can have their own back and fight for themselves. -KF002
2 OF 2 There are fights, abuse, assult, rape, etc. Inmates know if they see a fight that they are not involved in, not to interfere. Interfering with a fight, earns an inmate a ticket. Aside from the unwanted ticket, it is also protocol not to report injuries if something does happen. Reporting things is seen as snitching and will just cause more unnecessary conflict. Rikers leaves a permanent toll on everyone who has visited, it is straining and stressful. The jail is riddled with gangs. The biggest gang is the house gang and is in the first cell of the house. The house gang gets privileges to stay up later than everyone else, till around midnight by taking care of maintenance and cleaning. While the privileged are out cleaning, everyone else is locked in their cell by ten at night. Even the correctional officers take part in gangs as the operation. The jail is a multibillion dollar industry for drugs in the city. Many of the officers are minorities. They take part in the gangs for protection or to earn extra money. Inmates and correctional officers are both “serving time”. Everything in a jail is high demand, and hard to come by, meaning people inside will pay top dollar. Many of the officers will risk bringing in cigarettes or drugs in order to make large profits for their families, or to simply keep themselves safe in the jail. In 2015, over 4,000 cases were filed by guards for “use of force”. Many inmates complained they were being tied up like roasted pigs. People are being treated so roughly, in result are suffering life-long injuries such as: bone and nerve damage, broken bones, physical and mental trauma. The only thing inmates can do to right the harm is either file for a grievance which is an absolute joke, or go all the way and file for a lawsuit. In 2015, over 3,000 people were put into punitive segregation, or solitary confinement. Solitary confinement is being locked into a small cell all alone, getting smaller food portions, never leaving the small room, going crazy, and listening to the screaming madhouse. The cells are gloomy and have maggots and roaches. It is so overwhelming that many lose their sanity. In order to keep their milk cold, they have to place it in the toilet water. The noise is unbearable, and even worse at night time. If someone dies at Rikers, the day goes on as normal. No one inside Rikers really has a set time to be held. The hardest part about leaving the joint, is feeling the a scared animal finally being let out of the cage. Sadly, around forty percent of those released will return to Rikers within three years. It is hard for these people to properly adjust back to the world. Many do not want to be around anyone or share and thoughts, because they feel a distrust. They come back feeling tense, angry, stuck, and frustrated. These people need better, inside the jail and for when they come out. -KF002
The video explain to us the viewers a broad generalization of what it is like to go to Rikers island, to live there, and about the hopes of one day leaving that place. The video touched on the intimates that had been there once upon a time and the experiences that they have seen or have been thru. In the beginning they talk about their ride on the bridge before they get to Rikers. One guy said it was day time but it felt dark. Most of them said they were hoping they make it out. It’s scary to think how they felt. You have all these people locked up in cells for numerous charges. Most people are scared, there are a few that are causing the violence in Rikers to be tough, some are even just trying to cool out till there time is up. I never understood why inmates who are jail try to bully someone else and or take stuff from other people. Everyone is there for a purpose why not try to get a long and not cause problems. Most of what happens at Rikers is senseless violence. For example, one man was on the phone with his mother and a guy came up behind him and said you can’t be on that phone. While his mother was still on the phone screaming what happened what happened her son is being sliced on the face just because he is using a phone. If I was the mother I would be scared for my son. How would someone be able to sleep at night knowing this just happened and the phone hangs up? Everyone thinks about the inmate and how it is affecting them but they also need to take in consideration of the family that this is going to effect. The families have to send money on there books and worry of that person is ok while there in there. And even if something does happen they can’t tell the guards because it is a sign of weakness in there. They even talked about being sexually assaulted while there. The inmate couldn’t even go tell them that happened to her. Which is sad because no one should be taken advantage of no matter the circumstances. It says “Nearly eighty percent of the detainees on Rikers have not been convinced of a crime. They are being held awaiting trial, sentencing, or dismissal. The average stay is less than two months but some have wait two to six years.” So out of those eighty percent of people they are probably from low income households that can't afford to bond he or she out. I never understood why they make people who are from low income neighborhoods bond smaller than most people. I feel it should match how much someone makes a year. It says “Over half the detainees can’t afford bail , often set below 1,000. “40% of the detainees have a mental illness.” Even if it’s depression, I’m sure a lot of people who are in jail or prison have it at one point in time. Some may have it before they got there or they develop it when the make it to Rikers. This one lady said she didn’t believe in taking the medication they were trying to give her while an inmate some need a shoulder to cry on. Which is true for most because they’ve probably never had someone to talk to about problems going on in there life. If some people just had that shoulder to cry on to get all that anger out then maybe violence wouldn’t happen as much as it does. It’s crazy to hear that people would run their sandwiches on the floor and eat them or the fact they would pick up roaches and eat them off the floor. In the media they try to show that jail is a rehabilitation to help prisoners turn around their lives. But how is this possible with conditions like this. Another thing that stood out to me was someone could be your friend in jail and be your enemy in the real world. Or be your friend out there and be your enemy in jail. Which i get you have to survive under those conditions. Batman002
In this video you learn about what life is like in Rikers prison to be there and hopefully leave a place such as that. This video touched on the inmates and gave us some insight about their life behind those bars, and basically the things they have done and witnessed so in short their life. The video started with this ride over the bridge and we got to know what some of the people were thinking as they were on their way. One inmate stated "it was day but felt like night" which i interpreted as he could basically see the end of the road for him and his freedom. Like the day could symbolize his freedom and joy, and the night his regret and sorrow. It showed us how a lot of the inmates behaved while incarcerated. Some were nervous and scared, others were mellowed and just trying to get done with their sentence, then there were the bullies and the ones always stirring up commotion. These types of documentary videos will always entertain any audience because most do not know what prison is like, and those who do will get to see it from another persons point of view compared to their own. Which in turn will allow the individuals to reflect and not only become more knowledgeable for themselves but for the younger society coming up.wiseguy002
Helpless, defenseless, and terrifying, those are just a few of the type of words that were used to describe Rikers Island, a jail that was a vicious hunting ground. Many of the people who lived to tell their story from Rikers Island are traumatized from the experiences, maybe even still affected to this day. Rikers Island is missing so many key pieces that should be required for a large jail of that type. One thing this huge jail was missing was a trained staff. Rikers may have had trained staff members, but these staff members rarely did anything to help. Many of the inmates from this jail had to fear for their life, with often times no one to turn to, and the CO’s were of no help. This is a problem in a lot of prisons, but in Rikers it’s a totally different thing. There is a difference between Negligence, and improper training. The acts of these guards were clearly more on the negligent side. With guards knowing there were gangs, that took people’s commissary, and their phone time, it is scary to think that in that jail, you’re much more vulnerable to being attacked then on the streets. You had to worry about who was in front of you and behind you at all times. This place sounds scary, and awful. It’s angering to think that guards would watch people be beaten, stabbed, and taken advantage of, yet they wouldn’t do anything to stop it. Many times guards would look the other way. Another problem is within the reporting system. With these guards looking the other way, you lose the ability to report the crimes that go on. With nowhere to turn the offenders are often victimized, assaulted, and sometimes killed. This is a harsh environment for the type of offenders that are serving time in jail. Often times we forget that jail is usually meant for pretrial, low level criminals, and offenders that couldn’t post bail. This environment isn’t an environment for an innocent person awaiting trial to prove they’re innocent. Who knows if that person will be able to make it out. The Latin Kings were the top gang of Rikers Island. While the latin kings were the leaders of the jail, they oppressed everyone and took over with a dominating force. The Latin Kings were a vicious gang, with little morals, and respect for authority. Corrections only worsened the rise of the Latin Kings. The system gave them house authority, and for whatever reason let them stay out of their cells for an extra hour at night. I don’t understand how any warden of a jail or prison, could let any of this slide. These offenders were here for a reason and special treatment towards one group and not the rest is enabling them to have a power construct, and control the rest of the population. Then, along comes the rival, Brotherly Love Overrides Oppressive Destruction. This gang also known as BLOOD, was a majority black gang. The gang members spoke of this gang, as more of a family so when you went to prison you have a family to protect you in their as well. Like most gangs, BLOOD’s believed in the way to become the best was to do the worst things. The BLOODs were the minority in the jail. BLOODs were a rising popularity at Rikers Island. The cast of the movie described the CO’s as their own gang that would help the BLOOD’s, or Latin Kings, if they wanted. Slowly as the bloods became more popular the guards slowly shifted their extra stuff, like drugs, money, or extra time out of their cells to the BLOODs. Slowly the BLOODs became more appealing, and started to rise up in this system. The correctional system was problematic, because you have officers committing crimes like the offenders in the system. You have correctional officers selling drugs to inmates. At one point in the video the offender explained, that the line between inmate and CO is a very small line. Another point along the video they further explained their corruption by talking about how the officers allowed the inmate to have a key to open his window and hide his pouches of drugs. With Jorg002
this much corruption and its so consistent, it makes you wonder how long it would take to fix such a broken system, but who knows if there is a fix. Corruption was so rampant due to the pricing of these illegal drugs on Rikers Island. Almost all of the drugs were 10 times more expensive than they were on the street, making selling drugs to inmates a live changing experience, and endless potential to become more wealthy. At the time these corrections officers were drawn in, because their salary wasn’t going to make them rich, but selling that cocaine to the inmates would bring in hundreds of thousands. Correctional officers even bet on fights. They would let two people out of their cell and bet on who would win. This disgusts me, because at anytime you could become a victim and the only person who could possibly save you is the CO’s, but instead they’re too busy seeing whos gonna win the fight, since they put $10 or fifteen on your head. Use of force was another serious issue. These officers with little training, beating and overusing force against offenders, even going as far as raping some of the inmates. You often wonder how this could continue how somebody wouldn’t give in and tell someone else so they could try to make it stop, but often times in jails you have no ability to report crimes, or even get help. If you aren’t in a gang then you can expect them to help, and then the guards aren’t there to help you either. You feel alone and like you have to fight for your life. These guards didn’t just use force, they abused force, they brutally beat, almost to the cause of death. The inmates stood no chance against these correctional officers with riot shields, batons, and even walkie talkies were used as weapons against the offenders. The solitary confinement cells were very overused. Many of the people on the show talked about how they walked in it sounded like an insane asylum with all of the yelling and screaming. With solitary confinement comes hallucinations, this is enough by itself to make you go completely crazy. What’s scary is that you could be cast into one of the cells for close to nothing. Officers used discretion to throw you in a solitary cell. These solitary cells of cause true mental problems, depression, anxiety, or schizophrenia. The offenders described the CO’s beating a prisoner was like business as usual. That after someone was beaten they just went on about their day and continued. They didn’t have the ability to worry about other victims, because they go and check on that victim and who knows, they may be the next victim of the vicious COs. The freedom of getting out of this jail was so different, these people felt like they escaped slavery, or a serious gangland. One problem with readjustment back into regular society was that often times in jail they had to use violence to get what they want or to even be treated like a human. So, this created troubles when they were released from jail because they felt like they had to continue to fight for what they needed, or their only thing to resort to when faced with difficulty was physical violence. They had no help coming back to that normality. They felt helpless and like they didn’t know what to do. This shows how we need to shift our focus Jorg002
towards helping these offenders reintegrate into our community so that we can all feel happy and safe knowing that they have taken the time to come back to our community and then we can welcome them instead of being scared of them. These people often have trouble with being back in the community with almost PTSD like symptoms, feeling tense in the population. Another important piece was releasing six thousand inmates means nothing if they have nothing to come home to, no jobs, no food, no way of life. They will be turned down for any job even some mcdonalds will turn them down. We need to look for ways to reintegrate them into our community so it’s safer for everyone, and then we can decriminalize the smaller crimes. These smaller crimes become problematic, because we have everyday you and me’s rotting in jail because they couldn’t post bail on the speeding ticket they forgot to pay. We have to put work into our criminal justice system to rethink how we view the members of our society. To conclude, it’s become clear to me that Rikers Island had very many of its own problems, some we can’t fix, but what we can do is strive to help reintegrate the people back to our communities. Jorg002
Beginning the Rikers Prison documentary, they begin to explain the journeys of separate inmates of color, stature, race, & gender. By doing so, while watching this documentary, I realized the reasoning behind that. It was to reach everyone whom was watching this documentary. Every single viewer of this video could relate, to a while suburban white female who was incarcerated, a African American female & male, people of the Spanish decent. What dealt stuck with me during this documentary was the people who were involved in the corruption of a male who was wrongfully convicted. A man whom happened to be at the wrong place, wrong time. The male in which I forgot his name, but the backstory I didn’t forget, he was walking through his neighborhood & decided to hangout at park, an officer from New York PD, stopped the male & said he fit the description of a male whom had been involved in a robbery. The officer then cuffed the male, the officer whom had seen the altercation & robbery identified the male as the one involved in the robbery, even though, that man had just entered the park & was nowhere near the incident. The male, this was his first time at Rikers Island, along with the other stories the men & women were telling, they all explained the bridge. The long bridge , making the exit & entrance to the jail, one way. Later in the documentary, a male explains how even the correctional officers are even incarcerated due to the long bridge explained in the beginning of the video. As the males & females explain the bridge , they move into the strip search that all inmates endured, the defacing of inmates. Putting this into my own perspective , I could not imagine doing that. I feel I would lose my sense of man while another man searches me. It felt the same way for all males & females, losing that sense of integrity when you walk in the door of Rikers island. Later in the documentary they explain the difference in sections of the jail. How inmates run their own housing area they have different people who run the jails. The former inmates then explain how each individual person was to follow the rules, & if they weren’t interested in doing so, then their meals, lunches, & breakfast would be taken. Including commissary, some of the males explained how they weren’t going to follow some of those rules because they wanted to do their time & be out of there. Then come the sexual assaults the men & women faced, not only from the inmate, but some from corrections which leads into the horrible things the officers did to the inmates. They bet money on inmates who fought each other. They literally beat inmates who didn’t necessarily deserve it. Some of the time, they would put inmates in a place called the box, solitary confinement.
Pt. 2 - This stuck with me pretty hard, due to the fact that one female explains how she assumed a grain of rice was moving & she felt as if she was going insane with a grain of rice. The female bangs on her door & tells the officer she needs to go to therapy & the officer stated “don’t worry it’s just a maggot.” More former inmates explain their encounters with the “box”. One male explains the chips of paint, that he could begin to see the paint moving. He explains that some chipped paint would begin to dance as they formed into human & that didn’t sit well with me at all. These people were being treated as if they were animals, they were forced to ration their food more than it was already being rationed. They got less food than they already did in the first place. One inmate explains how he was forced to save a piece of bread for later as if he didn’t want to eat then & there. Another inmate explains how he begins to feed & name maggots or roaches whom were in his “box”. In conclusion, they give updates on all inmates, one in which who was shot the day before his big settlement payment. Many inmates, like him received payment for their troubles and or beating the endure. Some males in which returned to Rikers Island. All of this gives me a perspective on exactly why this jail needs to be shut down. This is no longer a rehabilitation facility, this is the bottom of the barrel for people to be living in these types of conditions & it is absolutely horrible. -as002
The video about Rikers Island that we watched in class was very moving; furthermore, I found the interviews of men and women who had been kept Rikers to be heartbreaking yet a great way to really put into perspective what being imprisoned there was like. Built in 1650, Rikers Island once had a population of more than 30,000 inmates, and it has nearly 10,000 beds. A lot of very sad facts were stated in this video like how 80% of the detainees were not convicted of a crime and were simply awaiting trial. Half of this population could not afford the bail which was posted at under $1000 either. One of the most common stories told by the men was about “getting with the program” or dealing with the “head of the house. Everything has to be fought for in prison. A man who was only 14 when he first went to Rikers said he was asked for his sneakers and he just gave them up, but he was immediately beaten up for showing weakness and his own friend, who was in with him, just stood away and let it happen. His friend knew that he could not help him if he wanted to keep his status and respect. Some went in just feeling the instinctual desire for dominance and knew that they had to immediately show a toughness and willingness to fight. A lot of correctional officers just allowed this to happen and only stopped it before it got too out of hand. The officers just knew, even though it is not right, that it was the way the prisoners kept a “status quo” of sorts. Showing no fear is extremely important in prison or you will immediately be walked all over and taken advantage of. The New York Times has thankfully reported City Council voted that by 2026 Rikers Island will be shut down and four jails spread throughout New York will take its place. The closing will cost about $8 billion dollars to accomplish. What I got from this video was how much violence went on in Rikers. I am very for this movement; however, the citizens of New York are not completely pleased with the locations of the four new jails to be built. They all take place within the different cities by local places, such as stores and next to City Hall. Rikers has been around and abusing its inmates for far too long and I can only hope that the closing and relocating will be successful. -Gamma002
The video that we were shown in class and later had to finish on our own was about Rikers Island in New York. There were interviews with men and women who stayed at Rikers and they talked about their experiences there. Rikers island was built in 1650 and was housing over 30,000 people which included men, women, and juveniles. Out of that, about 90% were just there being detained and they were awaiting trial. This video showed the effects of mental illness and violence and how being there has changed many people. The main thing that stuck out to me was the experience of Cathy, the white woman who was an employee of a paralegal however she ended up in Rikers due to money issues and then ultimately missing a court date that she thought was moved to another day. Right away when she first started talking in the video, I knew that she was a changed woman. I could hear the pain and suffering in her voice right away. This made me think about how people that make one simple mistake especially a mistake during a time of need go to places like Rikers and come out changed forever and not in a good way. She explained how she after her third child, her and her family were facing eviction and she wired money to herself that was not hers, it was over $200,000. Almost every word that came out of her mouth you could tell she was fighting back tears. She explained how she experienced things that changed her. Going from career for criminal law to becoming an inmate at Rikers Island all because of a mistake is just so sad to hear. To me. I do not think she wanted this, she was desperate for money however that landed her in jail. It was wrong but it sucks that she had to live through that ugly life in jail for that mistake. She explained how she got raped there and the thing was nothing was done because the “rule” was that you do not snitch and tell anyone what happened. She also saw so much violence first hand like her experience with watching a fellow inmate get her head bashed in. She explained how there was so much blood and that the smell of that blood will forever be with her. I know she made a mistake and she should be punished for what she did however what she went through while there, she did not deserve that. That is the thing about being in jails and prisons, there is so much fear and violence. What I got from this video was how much violence went on in Rikers. I have always know that there is violence in jails and prisons but this just gave me more insight on that. A thing that was brought up a lot by the men in the video was them explain how they had to use violence to protect themselves. The main thing that should be thought about in prisons and jails throughout the world is moving forward and getting better however staying alive and not getting beat up is the main thing many inmates think about on a daily basis while they are in there. The rule of surviving is to be able to fight back because if you show any kind of weakness then you will be someones b****. An example of this was when one of the men talking told us about how other inmates wanted to take their shoes and they let them because they did not want to get beat up however since they gave up the shoes so quickly they would have to give them more and more stuff. If you do not show that you can stand up for yourself then you are weak to everyone in there. It is really sad that violent people do not get help, they just become more or they stay as violent just so they can survive. It is even worse when non violent people like Cathy get put into that environment and have to become violent. I am all for punishment for committing a crime however at the same time it needs to be a calmer environment where people coming in serve their time and learn from their mistakes and become better people. Overall, this video really shed light on life in Rikers and showed the effects of that. -wags002
ReplyDeleteThe experience with Kathy stuck out to me too. It was really unsettling hearing her talk about the violence she saw there. I wrote in my response how you could hear the pain in her voice while she talked about her experiences at Riker Island. I read in an article that this facility has been notorious for its violence and dysfunction for decades. This video really put emphasis on that statement. Riker Island really did change peoples lives. The video talked about inmates being put in " the box" and how they lost themselves while they were in there. It said that the inmates would start doing things that normal people would not do. It was very unsettling watching the video but it was also eye opening too. I agree that people need to be punished for crimes they commit but not this way, this way was very dehumanizing. -ju002
DeleteKathy's experience was very memorable and though it is sad and wrong, I am not at all surprised she was taken advantage of. She was a woman with a successful career and an education, so she had no idea how to gain respect or how to act in the jail. I think the part that really stuck with me is just the aesthetic of Rikers itself. The hearts of the men who told their stories sunk as soon as they saw the jail over the bridge. Jails are not supposed to look welcoming, but just the outside of this single jail could take away any and all happiness from a person. I cannot be happier to hear it get shut down by 2026. -Gamma002
DeleteThis video about Rikers Island that we watched in class really disturbed me. The video was interviews from men and women about their experiences at Rikers Island. The one thing that all the interviews had in common was the stories about violence. One interview that really stood out to me was Kathy Morse experience. She was the woman that worked as a paralegal but after her third child, her family ran into money issues and was facing eviction of their house. Kathy embezzled over 200,000 dollars from the company she worked for. She then missed her court date that she thought was moved to a different day and a warrant was put out for her arrest. In this video you could tell that Kathy suffered during her time at Riker Island. You could hear the pain in her voice and could tell she was fighting back tears when she talked. The one thing that Kathy talked about in her interview that made me very uneasy was her story about the two women fighting. The way she described the woman bashing the other woman’s head into the concrete floor and the metal bed frame was horrifying. She stated that you could smell the blood and hear the flesh. She seemed very emotional while she talked about this. Kathy said that the smell of blood will forever be with her. She added that the correctional officers just stood there and watched this happen. This honestly surprised me. Later in the video, an interview from another inmate mentioned that the correctional officers were basically serving time too. This means that the correctional officers were not really different from the inmates They were doing criminal things within the walls of Rikers Island, such as selling drugs to the inmates for a higher price. One of the inmates stated that correctional officers would bring in four packs of cigarettes that cost forty four dollars and make 1,000 selling it to the inmates. The inmates also mentioned that the correctional officers would place bets on fights. They would also beat the inmates up themselves. In one interview he said that there was this one time where he was getting beat up for four or five minutes straight and they broke some of his bones. Then the video showed a picture of him after that beating. That picture was really unsettling. That inmate was in a wheelchair for about a month and a half to two months. It is really upsetting to think that someone would do this to another person. Another interview that left me uneasy was of the black women that talked about being sexually assaulted by a group of correctional officers. She stated that she was in her cell and the group of them came in and shoved her towards the back of the cell. She then stated that they pushed her panties to the side and inserted their fingers in her anus. The video said that in 2015, there were over 4,000 documented cases of “use of force” by guards. It is really upsetting that people would go into the criminal justice field for the wrong reasons. Another big part of the video is when the interviews talked about being in segregation. The video said that in 2015, more than 3,000 detainees were “sent to punitive segregation” on Rikers Island. The inmates stated that who lose their minds while you are in the box. You start to lose who you are and start doing things that a normal person would not do. The inmates stated that they would start counting the cracks in the walls, play with feces, make shaped out of the chipped paint on the wall, befriending the insects and rats by feeding them. One inmate stated that he felt like his mind was breaking down because his body was breaking down too due to the smaller portion of food you get while in the box. They would put their milk cartons in the toilet to keep them cold. The stories about these people experience at Riker Island are very dehumanizing. I know that people who do the crime need to be punished in some way, but this is not the way. Riker Island is now closing. An article I read said that this facility has been notorious for its violence and dysfunction for decades. This video really put emphasis on that statement. -ju002
ReplyDeleteYou mentioned how the video distrubed you while watching and I could not agree more. I always have known that there is violence in jails and prisons but Rikers was just awful. It was hard for me to hear about what so many people went through there. I remember a part in the video where an inmate talked about how another inmate got hot water thrown on his face and he took his hands to his face to wipe some it off and the water was so hot that his skin came off when he wiped. It seemed like that inmate was one who just wanted to do his time and get out with no issues and that didn’t sit well with other inmates because he was deemed as weak. It also amazed me that the correctional officers were doing so much bad stuff in there as well. That whole video was so eye opening and I hope no other place it like Rikers. -wags002
DeleteOne of the points you addressed was that there were over 4,000 documented cases of use of force by the guards. What's even sadder is how many of those uses of force are undocumented. Several of the people interviewed stated that they did not report their attacks or abuse by other inmates or by corrections officers. The culture of fear that has been placed on these individuals undoubtedly accounts for that number being extremely high. Candie was the young woman that was physically and sexually assaulted by the corrections officers. What really struck me with her case is that she spent 3 years awaiting trial and she was acquitted of her charges. She went through pure hell and was never proven to have committed a crime. There are other people like Kathy that committed a nonviolent crime and was put through pure hell. What is even sadder is that Kathy like many other inmates never received medical treatment because of fear of retaliation. Regardless of crimes committed, these are human beings whose lives will never be the same.-zen002
DeleteTo say that the video on Rikers Island was disturbing is a bit of an understatement. One of the first things that was alarming to me about the Rikers island jail is that 80% of the people that are incarcerated there have not been convicted of a crime. They are either awaiting trial, sentencing or other situations. The length of time spent at Riker’s spans anywhere from 2 months to 6 years. It's a completely different lifestyle. One of those interviewed, Marcel Neal, stated that "Everything is upside down." What is good on the outside is bad on the inside and vice versa. Another aspect that really needs to be addressed is the fact that 40% of those at Rikers have mental illness. The sad thing is that many who don't have mental illness entering will have a mental illness by the time they leave due to post traumatic stress syndrome, depression, and other aspects of life while incarcerated. The thing that strikes me the most is the level of abuse and mistreatment for people that have not even been found guilty. Most of these people are awaiting trial or awaiting sentencing. Many others never committed the crimes that they were accused of but came out of Riker's in worse shape mentally than they ever were before they went in. . The corrections officers should be there to prevent and protect the people as well as making sure that people do you have some quality of life. Violence is such a way of life at Rikers that people have become desensitized to the violence. The gangs seem to rule the jail. In some cases those incarcerated viewed the corrections officers as part of the biggest gang there. The beatings, physical assaults, and sexual assaults by the guards are one of the most inhumane things I have ever heard. Ralph Nunez suffered a concussion, brain injuries and sciatic nerve injuries based upon a beating by corrections officers and was later awarded $150,000 in a lawsuit. The story of Robert Hinton is absolutely heartbreaking. You can only gasp at the picture of his face after he was beaten by corrections officers. He was unrecognizable. He vowed to never return to prison and won $450,000 in a lawsuit. Yet he was killed in 2015 on Thanksgiving Day, days before he was set to receive the payment. Many of those that are incarcerated are set in the mind state that it is hard to be positive when all you can think about is survival. 40% of those incarcerated at Rikers return within three years. Some, like Reverend Benny receive their degrees and went on to be a pastor and a peer counselor. One young lady also struck my heart. Candie Haley was viciously assaulted while incarcerated at Rikers Island. She was awaiting trial and spent three years there. In May of 2015 she was acquitted of her charges. This is someone who was found not guilty of her charges and yet she endured the horrors of Riker's Island. It has to be extremely hard to serve time and be hurt for a crime you didn't commit and then try to re-enter society and resume normal life. After researching more about Rikers Island, I discovered that the New York City council is currently voting to close Rikers Island and instead have four smaller jails by 2026. This came to light when looking at the case of Kalief Browder. Kalief was sent to Rikers and jailed for 3 years for stealing a backpack. He never went to trial and was eventually released with the charges dropped. A few days after being released he committed suicide. If someone commits a crime, by law they should be punished. That is not punishment; it is just plain inhumane and a horrific experience for all involved. The job of a corrections officer should be primarily to make sure that the people incarcerated are taken care of and to prevent fights or other violence. To be complacent with the violence and even participating in it is beyond comprehension. This is something that definitely needs to change. These are human beings and this video provided insight into the people that are incarcerated.-zen002
ReplyDeleteYou mentioned several key important things, the Kalief story on how he was sent there for three years. One point I like is how you shed light on the COs, I totally agree on this. There are making the siutation much worse by allowing this to happen. I agree with on how violence in Rikers is basically nothing to the inmates. It is normal to them and it also helps them survive. There is no excue on treating people like this, and you stated on how at the end of the day they are human beings, that have needs and feelings.-zw002
DeleteWatching the video on Rikers Island, gave me some details on how the correction system works. I was sad to listen to those stories, on how they survived being in there. More than 7,500 are held on serious crimes,America it self has the largest population for people being incarcerated. Nearly 80% of inmates on Rikers Island has not been convicted of a crime, they are there waiting for their trails, and waiting to be sentenced. Which is very common for jails everywhere, and the sad thing is that many are in jail for up to two to five years just to there case read. I got to watch on how it felt from riding the bus over the bridge to actually them stepping inside the jail. This was very haunting to listen to, you are taking young boys who has never been in prison. Many name the strip search as being the most hardest thing for them coming into jail. You have fear that is weighing on them, and other inmates coming at them with calling them names like “victim and fresh meat”. That is very scary for anyone coming into a place where they are going to be for months to years. It’s every man for themselves in there, as one man was telling the story on how his friend walk away from in getting his sneakers taking. It wasn’t that he was trying to be phoney or not caring, but simply seeing if his friend could stand on his own. Now 40% if inmates in Rikers Island are mentally ill. Learning in class and even from the sheriff talking about how peoria County has a high percent is nothing new. What really got to me is how they were or is treating the mentally ill while in there. Some were telling how certain COs would pee on them, to me the COs are just as bad or worser than the inmates in the jail. How are you supposed to help certain ones who can’t help the way their minds work by degrading them even more. I got more understanding on how the inmates run the jail. They call it “the house” and would or try to get new inmates to follow them. Violence was often use when it came to thi, because know one wants to wash someone’s underwear or be their yes man. It is easy for one to dismiss this, but its different in there. To me it came off as you having no choice in the matter. Many might think that you have protecting inside because of the COs. They are more of your enemy just like everyone else. Watching the tapes of the force that was used on those inmates weren’t call for. It’s more of a degrading mentality those COs have and treat them as such. Solitary confinement is a use for punishment, for inmates. By the way those men were telling about it, it sounding like pure hell insanity. I have always been against this method of punishment. I’m not saying it is ok not to be punished, but this method this taking it to far. You can be very messed up in the head. Hearing voices and developing certain mental illness that weren’t never there before. It is basically a jungle on Rikers, and some of them men stated doing things they thought they would never do. Certain things like stabbings, and fights, just to prove that they can stand on their own. You have different walks of life coming in Rikers, a mother who had her degree in criminal justice, how ironic is that. By misleading the system she got sent there, and being sexually assaulted and witnessing violence. Even some of the men in the video were innocent serving time, and some just came from toxic backgrounds growing up. One thing is was glad to see at the end is how majority of the current inmates did made something out of that horrific situation. I notice how several of them started or led programs to help former inmates like them, as they got out. It was a big adjustment for them getting out and staying out. Overall this is not a place anyone wants to go, for some it is hard to stay out. The system needs to do better when it comes to how they treat the mentally ill in there, and the COs need to be punished for their actions.It really shows how the jails works and wht goes on in there.-zw002
ReplyDeleteHearing those stories about what those inmates shook me to my core, especially the stories about solitary confinement. It's extremely sad in this country we boast about treating people fairly and with respect but turn around and treat people like crap behind prison walls. Closing that horrid prison should be a massive priority for reform. Honestly, that place and its awful practices are far beyond what we can do to save it and I think it’s time to let it go. That place destroyed lives and did nothing to help the people who were there, I say we should close it down for the sake of reform.-OUTATIME002
DeleteThe conditions at Rikers Island were nothing short of hellish and inhumane. From the corrupt guards, the fighting, solitary confinement and the stories from the people in there really messed with me. Hearing the stories of the people who were in solitary confinement is what really shook me the most. That one guy who told about what he did with the milk cartoon was the story that got to me the most. But I wasn’t just the horrid conditions in solitary that made this place awful, it was the way the inmates were treated, all the violence and the sexual violence and the corrupt nature of the place. I honestly never knew why this place was going to close, primarily because I’ve never heard of Rikers Island until now. But now I fully understand why this awful place needs to be closed for good. The statistics form the documentary really said a lot about the awful nature of the place. The one that got to me was the documented cases of use of force. There were over 4,000 documented uses of force in 2015 alone. I can understand if the guards were doing this to break up fights, but the clip in the documentary shows a guy being thrown to the ground for seemingly no reason. This suggests that the guards are overusing their authority, even the inmates compared the officers to having a gang on their own, because of how violent they could be. Another thing that got to me was the women who mentioned that they could not intervene with fights. That really doesn’t make any sense to me and how even the guards wouldn’t intervene either. Some would even bet on the outcomes of the fights between inmates. I honestly don’t believe anyone will miss this prison when it closes and for the sake of reform, I think it is time to let Rikers Island die. Back to my point on solitary confinement, the story of Devon Washington and his time in solitary confinement. Mr. Washington’s story seemed no different, but I’m glad he was willing to fight the system to make it better. He and three others worked to successfully banned solitary confinement for young inmates, but it came after the suicide of a young inmate, who spent three years in confinement. The city of New York said that they would transfer younger inmates away from Rikers Island for their own safety. Mr. Washington was sent to solitary after an issue with a deputy warden. There is a new push to close the Rikers Island jail and I think it’s for the better. The plan to close the jail is part of a push to reduce the jail population and getting rid of Rikers Island is a great first step. The push for reducing populations is going on all over the nation. Since 2007, the jail populations have been down from 780,200, to 745,200 in 2017. The number of beds in jail that have been full has been reduces to just 81%, down from 95% in 2005. The number of correctional officers that were hired in jails were 225,700 by midyear of 2017. One interesting statistic I found was the amount of time the average person spent in jail. The average amount of time spent in jail is around 26 days in 2017. This is mostly due to the short turnover rate for smaller jails. Jails with an average daily population of over 2,500 have held inmates for longer than jails with an average daily population of less then 100. There were also around 55,900 people who were watched outside of jail. This was made possible by letting inmates out for weekend programs, electronic monitoring, day reporting, rehab programs and others. The number of people being supervised outside of jails has decreased from 72,900 inmates to 55,900. Reform is on the horizon and after learning about the horrid conditions and stories about Rikers Island makes closing that place imperative. We also should still work hard to keep reducing populations even more. Seeing the improvements over the years is good progress, but we still need to work hard with lawmakers and the public to bring positive reform to our system and repair the damage it has caused.-OUTATIME002
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't want to be an inmate at this instituion. I can only imagine how this settled over time. Just didn't happen over night. With the violence and corruption it seems like you can't escape anywhere with out something happening to you. From getting beat up or to having your money stolen or personal items. If you don't stand up people with just mow you down and keep taking advantage of you. In the video one inmate even explained that inside here brings out a different kind of person then one being on the outside on the street. Navy002
DeleteWhere to even begin with Rikers Island. It seems like some people are innocent before they are presumed guilty before their case has even been heard. Also, that 80% of the inmates have not been convicted of a crime and are held for long periods of time. Mainly awaiting trial, sentencing, or even dismissal. On top of that, 40% have some kind of mental illness or a substance abuse problem. I understand that due to the temperment of each inmate that the severity of the crime dictates their attitudes along with how they portray themselves in society. The time they stay there are two months all the way up to 6 years. I found it interesting in the case of the one Latin Kings gang leader that he spent over 1500 days in solitary confinement. That has to be some strong will power. But through his mother and a message from a higher power, he found in himself what he had to do to rehabilitate his life through time, patience, and education. Even the sad note with the inmate named Kathy. I have some sympathy for her but like all the other cases that some know what they did was wrong and should have to pay for their crimes. But I do think the atmosphere of the jail, from the video, that this institution needs a major overhaul. Through the corruption and the social atmosphere and relatioships that the guards have with the inmates is overwhelming. One inmate was talking how the guards would get the inmates to fight each other just for their own amusement. Inmates assaulting each other in the showers and cells. But I can understand when locked up the enviroment is controlled and fixed to appoint that the natural need of self pleasure is always gonna be there. However, with the sex and corruption this jail needs fixed. They were saying that there was one guard for every inmate. That makes it a pretty sized jail with a holding of about 7500 inmates. They stated that about 2 million inmates arrive there a year. I can't believe because of the large population that the United States holds the inmate population as the biggest in the world. They were also explaining that some of these people have been in and out of the system for most of their juvenile and adult careers. Because the way the jail is setup that they have their own heirarchy or rank structure. Its a fight to survive . The top inmates are the ones who run the building which was stated as house inmates. As they work there way down from the muscles down to the little man who gets all their personal stuff stolen. if you don't belong to a gang or something you have to prove your intergrity or you will end up being someones buddy. As one prisoner stated, " your either the predator or the prey"! In one handout, the article talked about how the cycle of violence is so high that the mayor was moving inmates from Rikers Island to a prison in Albany and some of these prisoners were younger under the age of 22. They were put into solitary confinement cells for long periods of time. Some mainly for beating up the correctional guards. They were not the best on the block. But very serious crimes, after some attacks the inmates were beaten so severly that later down the road some filed lawsuits against the city for being badly hurt. So some of the ideas to prevent incidents like this happening again that they were thinking of closing the jail and coming up with smaller jails in the different neighborhoods of the city this would have decreased populations and maybe a decline in violence inside the jails. This would also give access for the inmates to have access to their families. Also help with the moral in this system and help the inmate rehabilitate easier as they move down the legal process. Hopefully, this would take care of the lawsuits from the inmates against the city and some kind of reform could happen and make things function a little more efficiently. But lastly, one thing that did make a change was that solitary confinement for people under 22 would be outlawed. Navy002
ReplyDeleteI also made the point that the faculty of Rikers Island and the council who oversees its actions are treating innocent people as if they have already been proven guilty. I say innocent not in the sense that they didn't do it but simply because they haven't had the right to a fair trial like most people get within a short amount of time elsewhere.It's hard to imagine the treatment that you received there and know in your own head that you haven't committed a crime. I stated that its enough to make someone go insane and actually commit a crime and I believe in that 110 percent. FIRE002
DeleteI said I would of felt them same way as the inmates that are going to jail. It would feel dark but it is still daylight outside the bus. I felt really sorry for the ones that got treated so poorly. I believe that no one should be treated like that. Also no one should follow other people commands that are inmates. There should be no fighting in the jail. I am glad solitary confinement for juveniles has stopped because no kids should be in that situation. I am glad the people that were inmates in Rikers Island had bettered their lives to not be in jail again. Some of them wanted to better prisons and jail. I believe they should just close it them fixing it. Softball002
DeleteRikers Island, in my own opinion is basically hell on earth for anyone committee of a crime in New York. Its old, its dirty, and most will say its just plain brutal. Rikers Island is part of the Corrections system in NewYork and the irony of that statement is that 80 percent of the people that are locked up there, are simply awaiting trial. Most of them haven't even been proven guilty in a court of law and they are sitting on the cold concrete locked behind steel bars for crimes they know they didn't commit. That's enough to make someone commit a crime simply by going insane. I dont think its right to just throw someone in such a horrid place without knowing for certain they are guilty. Of course jail isn't going to be the nicest place on earth with home cooked meals and heated mattresses, but no one who is awaiting trial or serving a misdemeanor sentence should have to do their time in such filth. The irony of the whole system is that you bring a young kid in off the streets. He's a green hand and mightve just stole his first candy bar or sold his first gram of dope. You toss him in a dirty and cold cell with a couple other guys who are also probably serving petty offenses and it all turns into a crock pot of mental instability and motivation to commit more crime. You start to see the physical and mental health deteriorate right in front of your eyes and before you know it, you have created a monster. People should not be going to places like these for petty offenses because it is proven that they will come out a lot more dangerous than when they went in. Forty percent of all inmates that are held at Rikers Island have been diagnosed with a mental disorder and that's only the ones who stepped forward and admitted that they have a problem. Most of the time, they are thrown some pills everyday and expected to get better vie that route but that isn't the case. As stated in the video, most of the people in there just need a person to vent to and to hold onto for salvation during such a troubling time in their lives. Instead, they are being poisoned and the taxpayers are the ones who end up paying for it in the end. It's a never ending merry go round of trouble and no one can seem to wrap their minds around that concept. There's literally years and years of data to prove it but it is so much easier to turn a blind eye. Another ironic topic when it comes to Rikers and its failed system of corrections is the amount of people who are there, simply because they can't make bail. Failure to make bail results in the continued holding of a person until said money is brought forth for the freedom.Over 50 percent of inmates at Rikers are only there because they, nor their families have the money to post bail and set them free. In return, the taxpayers who are paying for this island to “correct” inmates are only paying the jail thousands of dollars to house the individuals who couldn't scrounge up 500 dollars in order to be released. Most people who are committing petty crimes are doing so simply because they are hurting for money so i'm not sure where the corrections system though they could squeeze money out of inmates. Now i'm not saying that all the prisoners in there need to be cradled and rocked to sleep at night. Some of them are monsters who are awaiting trial that need to be in places like that for the rest of their lives. They lived a life of filth and disrespect and quite frankly that's how they deserve to live out the rest of their days. Locked away without the opportunity to harm anyone or anything else. On a brighter note, there have been movements towards the complete shutdown of Rikers for good. According to multiple sources, the failed island is set to be completely closed forever by the year 2026. FIRE002
ReplyDeleteAfter Watching the documentary Rikers Island Jail is the last place I would ever want to end up. When you look at the statisitics and see that 80% of people being held there haven’t even been proven guilty yet is just absolutly crazy. How can you have most of your inmates techinally be innocent. When it comes down to it, the poor are getting the worst of it. Considering the fact that 50% of the inmates there are still there just because they or their family can’t afford bail. Most of the time bail is less than $1,000. To me this is just problematic, because why would you hold someone in jail for less than $1,000 when it’s going to cost more to hold them there in the long run. -CRJB002
DeleteRikers Island is definitely hell on earth. There are people being put into jail that are innocent and doing at least 2 years here. It is very heartbreaking to know Rikers Island living conditions were very poor. Inmates slept in grim, and feces. Even though these people committed horrible crimes, they still should not be dehumanized. What stood out the most to me is that over 50% of inmates at Rikers Island families don't have the money to post bail. That is very surprising to me. I think that holding someone in jail for $1,000 or less is extremely ridiculous.-Jas002
DeleteBefore watching the Rikers Island American Jail video I have never heard of this jail before. Rikers Island is a large jail located on an island between Queens and the Bronx. A typical day at Rikers Jail has at least 7,500 inmates. Having 7,500 people on an average daily capacity is massive especially for a jail. Throughout the whole video I was in awe at just how terrible the treatment in this jail was. One statistic that I found very speechless was the fact that nearly 80% of detainees on Rikers Island haven’t been committed of a crime yet. I don’t understand how someone can be detained when they aren’t found guilty. The jail population is very poor considering the fact that half of the people in theirs bail is less than one thousand dollars. The violence talked about throughout this video is jaw dropping. When a new guy is placed in there he is automatically targeted for being fresh meat. One guy was in there with one of his friends who has already been in there for a little while, and as soon as he came in he was jumped by two guys for his shoes. His friend didn’t help him while he was getting jumped, because they had to make sure he could handle himself before they stick up for him. If the new inmates don’t stick up for themselves they become an easy target by the rest of the prison population. These guys are called the dummies, and they are forced to clean other inmates clothes, give other inmates their phone calls, give them any food from the cafeteria that they want, and really do anything that the other inmates want them to do. In the Rikers Island prison gangs are formed and if you don’t join a gang when invited the gang members will jump you. If you fight back and earn your respect you won’t have to be apart of a gang and will be able to do as you wish. These guys are the floater types, because they have earned everyone's respect to the point where they don’t get messed with, and they also don’t have to associate themselves with anyone. The overall violence inside the jail really shocked me. Every single inmate that talked throughout the documentary all talked about the violence inside the jail. This kind of violence shocked me, because I assumed that jails wouldn’t be too violent considering the fact that they are holding people for offenses less than a year. All the inmates must handle their own problems, because the second they go leave to talk to the officers they will be targeted so much worse. Even though these inmates are either bleeding or bruised up, when they are asked if they need medical attention they must say no. If inmates agree to medical attention they will be looked at as a weak snitch. When these inmates come back from medical attention they will have more people coming after them because they look like a snitch. Throughout the documentary something that really came to my attention was how almost all of the inmates on Rikers Island would have some kind of weapon to defend themselves. People would be able to make homemade knives by ripping off pieces of a fan. Other inmates would have razor blades, and weren't afraid to use them. One story throughout the documentary was an instance where an inmate who didn’t want to live in a certain part of the jail anymore so he told the officers. This man could very well fight he just wanted to be left alone and attend court. The other inmates on Rikers Island knew that he was moving out and started to get suspicious. One of the suspicious inmates took a cup and filled it with hot water and went up to him and splashed it all over his face. This caused the man's skin to instantly just burn off. I don’t understand how these inmates can get ahold of so many different weapons. After watching this documentary on Rikers Island Jail I can definitely see why so many people wanted to shut down the jail. Inside the jail was very disturbing, whether it be the dirtiness of the violence the jail was a very distressing. -CRJB002
ReplyDeleteAfter watching this video it put it into perspective how bad some jails can be. It is crazy that 80% of inmates had not been convicted and they were being held for trial because they could not pay bail. I do not think it is fair at all and it is still a problem today. I can not believe some of the stories that were told, like the man that had hot water thrown in his face and he peeled his face off. Those kinds of stories make your stomach turn and you wonder how someone could do that to someone else. It is crazy how malicious people can be. -wb002
DeleteRikers Island is a prison located in Newyork. This jail is home of the largest correctional institutes in the United States. There are about 9,000 correctional officers. Most of the people incarcerated here are, pretrial detainees, remained on bail or remaining in custody. The price for an inmate yearly is 209,000. This jail is known for violence, and neglect of inmates. There were several people who told their told stories about their experience at Rikers Island. 80% of the people who stay at Rickers island did not commit the crime they were accused for. One person who caught me by surprise was a man by the name of Damion James Stapleton. Mr. Stapleton is a black male who grew up in a very poor community, who’s mom was on drugs when he was younger. His mom also left him and and his younger siblings at a hospital. Damion was one of the hundreds of inmates who suffer from a mental disorder. 40% of people that are in Rikers Island suffer from some sort of mental disorder. Sadly, damions disorder lead him into jail.
ReplyDeleteAnother former inmate that was interviewed was Marcel Neil. He was incarcerated very young at the age of 14. During his first night stay, he had to fight for his life. Inmates tried to steal his commissary, and he had to stop it somehow. He described the living conditions as very nasty. One thing that stood out the most to me was when he said “Befriend people to learn their weakness”. A female former inmate that stood out to me was a lady by the name of Kathy Mors. She was a family woman who lived in a middle class neighborhood. She graduated college with a Bachelor's degree in criminal justice. She was sent to prison because she got caught wiring a large amount of money to herself. She was stopped by police, and taken into custody. Her stay at Rikers island was very traumatizing. She said that she was labeled a snitch to the other inmates, and they took advantage of it. took everything from her including commissary. Her husband would put money on the phone, and buy her things. Everything was taken by the inmates. Another inmate in rikers island that stood out to me was Berry Cambell. He started using drugs at the age of 8. By the age of 12 he committed a robbery. He said that he grew up fighting everyone. His mom sent him away, because she couldn't handle him anymore, he was sexually abused in foster homes. He never got any real help as a child, and was thrown into the criminal justice system. All of the former inmates said not only did the inmates fight, the correctional officers abused the inmates. Brutally beating them, and leaving them the urinate on themselves.
In 2015 more than 3000 detainees were sent to “punitive segregation” on rikers. This can be very depressing for inmates. Rather is 2 days or 100 days, being segregated from other can drive you crazy. You tend to lose who you are. Playing with feces. Inmates said little by little their sanity is being chipped away very slowly. Being released from prison is basically a rebirth at life. Looking at the former inmates faces when telling their story made them extremely happy. They said that it was very hard to adjust to the real world. Being around lots of people was very challenging, taking showers, and even sharing food can be very difficult. It was very surprising to me when they said even they used violence to solve small problems. At the end of this documentary mainly every inmate got a job in the criminal justice field. Either working as a correctional officer, or even a counselor for kids in trouble with the law. In conclusion, I love how everyone told their story about rikers island. There were black, white , hispanic, men and women incarcerated. In this jail. Each and very ones story touched me in some way. I think that the system is definitely designed for inmates to return, especially if they are going back to the same community. I learned a lot while watching this documentary. Everyone deserves a second shot at life.
-Jas002
I find it ridiculous that Rikers Island is known for the violence and neglect there and that it is known that the correctional officers do what they do. There seems to have been very little done to fix this problem and the only other option seems to be to just close it down entirely. Jail is a very different reality than life within society as you said and I am glad that the former inmates have been able to adjust and find a new direction in life. I hope more will be done to help stop corruption in the system and to help inmates and former inmates transform their lives into something better. -arm002
DeleteRikers Island and My thought
ReplyDeleteAccording to the video“ America has more people incarcerated than any other nation in the world." This means that we put more people in prison or jails than keeping them out on the streets or putting them in rehab to get help. The video said it is two million inmates a year that is being incarcerated. I think this too much because some of them could not be guilty of a crime but they have to go through the system until they are proven guilty of a crime. In the Rikers Island jail there are 7,500 inmates that are held there. If you don’t know where the jail is at, I will tell you. The jail is in New York City in the East river. The island is connected to the mainland by a single bridge. This means there is one way in and one way out of the jail. The jail is known for violence. On the video, one person said when they were crossing the bridge it felt like darkness but outside the bus it was still daylight. I would have felt the same thing because I don’t know if I would see the people that I love outside of the jail. 80% of the inmates at Rikers Island have not been convicted of a crime. This means that they are innocent till proven guilty in a court of law. They are just waiting for trial, sentencing or dismissal. The stay in the jail is less than 2 months but some have waited 2 to 6 years in jail. Some of the inmates that are in there got arrested and didn’t do that crime that the officers arrested them for. One of the examples in the video, the guy was young and heading to school. When he was walking to school, he decided to go to the park to see who was there. When he got to the park the two officers stopped him and accusing him for robbing someone that was hurt. This kid in mind was confused because he didn't robbed someone. One of the officers in the car stuck his head out of the car and said“ he is the one arrest him." The officers in that act was very wrong. They should of stopped him and asked if he saw anything that happened than discriminating that he was the one that hurt the other guy by robbing him. Half of the inmates that are there cannot afford bail that is below $1000. The reason why is because they are usually poor in the community. Some of the inmates said when they go to jail, it looked horrible inside. The walls were painted battleship grey, smelled bad, the other inmates was staring at the new inmates and there was dust all over. Some of the new inmates does not pass the first door. I believe they are scared to be in there. I really don't blame them. The older inmates that are in there will steal things from the new incomers to see if they will stick up for themselves. If they do then they won't mess with them ever again. At the jail there was 40% of inmates that was diagnosed with mental health. The other word for this is mental illness. The inmates that was diagnosed with this horrible health was treated horribly. The other inmates start beating them up. There are 2 or more inmates that runs the jail house. There are different categories on the podium. There is the top person that controls everything, the team is the enforcers, designated person is the people that control the day room, rock in spot are the ones that do whatever they want to do and then the last ones are the day room dummies. These are the ones that give up everything that they have including phone time. I believe you start as a day room dummy then work your way up the podium. In this jail you have to fight to survive. This is so horrible that you have to fight. We shouldn't have to do that. After the whole situation in 2015, officials are debating on fixing the system or closing it. I believe they should close it because it would take a long time to fix the system that was horrible in the Rikers Island jail. Softball002
I knew very little regarding the Rikers jail before watching this video. I like how you pointed out how America has more incarcerated than any other nation. Obviously our correctional facilities are failing. Rikers is one tough place for anyone, and most cannot handle the issues that come with. It is baffling the amount of people just being held in that hell hole, just awaiting a conviction. So many are just stuck, sadly because they cannot afford the bail to get out. It is punishment enough being held in a cell and being stripped of your freedom. What goes on inside of Rikers is a disgrace to humanity.
Delete-KF002
Before watching this video I knew very little about the jail. I knew it was a huge jail in New York. I knew that is had a pretty bad reputation and that it isn't somewhere you would want to go. While watching this video I learned that nearly 80% of the inmates were being held for trial and had not been convicted of a crime yet. Some have waited years for their trial. All of the people in this video were talking about how it was the worst place ever. They described the smell, look, and feel of the prison. They talked about getting strip searched and how intrusive it was for them. It was a free for all with all the inmates. I found it extremely interesting how one man talked about going to Rikers with a friend of his. The friend had been there several times and they were in the day room and the friend got up while a couple of guys jumped him for his sneakers. The friend came back and said that he had to see if he could stand up for himself before they could stand up for each other. It was a Rikers test. Almost half of Rikers Island has a diagnosed mental disorder. Most inmates in Rikers were animals. They would mentally, physically, and sexually abuse other inmates. Marcell Mill said that everything right outside was wrong inside and everything wrong outside was right inside. It was a complete 360 from jail to the outside world. There was a totem pole that Rikers inmates would follow. Correctional Officers were corrupt. They would let inmates get jumped and not do anything about it. You can not show weakness in jail because they will take advantage of you. All of these people talked about how the people you think are your friends will stab you in the back. They would watch you and learn your weaknesses so they could jump. Violence rules, predator prey, you needed a weapon to survive Rikers. If you didn't have a weapon or would not be violent you would get taken advantage of and have to wash underwear, give commissary, do whatever they tell you to do. One man was cut in the face and he told the correction officers he didn't need medical attention because in there you were not allowed to tell anyone anything. You can't report anything because you handle things yourself on the inside. Gangs were a huge problem in Rikers. Gangs ran the jail, Latin Kings and bloods were the biggest gangs in there and if you weren't apart of one or another gang than you had to gain a lot more respect from everyone. It didn't matter if you were a CO or an inmate, both were doing time. Correctional Officers would bet on inmates and they would smuggle drugs and other things in for the inmates. There was a lot of money going around, a $11 pack of cigarettes was $200 in jail. Rikers Island was a different type of jail. Inmates would fight on the daily and would abuse each other in every way possible. The biggest rule in jail is killed or be killed. You are on edge at all times, if you did not stand up for yourself that you would get beaten and have everything taken from you. You had to be violent to get any sort of respect. The only people in there that could protect you were the correctional officers but they were corrupt too. They would let you get beaten and if you snitched you would lose their respect too. Most jails are a more mild version of Rikers. The story some of the ex-convicts were telling were horrific. The way that some people were beaten or abused was not human at all. The one thing that stood out the most to me was when a man said, wrong is right and right is wrong in there. It was like a different world when you got inside. You could not trust anyone and had to be selfish in almost every aspect. If you were not selfish you would be taken advantage of. I loved this video it made me learn a lot more about Rikers than I knew. -wb002
ReplyDeleteAfter watching the video and reading the article on Rikers Island, I have a different perspective on the whole situation. According to the video, Rikers Island has a daily population of about 7,500 people. If you think about that compared to what we had learned about the Peoria County Jail, it is unimaginable to me. Peoria County Jail has a daily population under 300 people, but it makes sense since New York CIty is a much more populated area. Eighty percent of the inmates at Rikers Island have not been convicted of any crime and over fifty percent cannot afford a bail which is usually under a thousand dollars. A lot of people inside of jails are not extremely violent offenders either which makes the whole situation worse. The conditions in this jail are very poor and it is sad that these people have to sit and wait all because they cannot afford it. The conditions at Rikers as described by the former inmates in the video include inmates being held for long periods of time awaiting trial, a lot of violence, abuse from both correctional officers and other inmates, sexual abuse, unnecessarily long sentences of solitary confinement, and more. Jail is not supposed to be the coziest or nicest place ever, but this place has got some huge issues. I had no idea that Rikers Island was such a big problem until now, but knowing everything I know now, I totally believe the jail should be shut down for good. The video had said that forty percent of the inmates were diagnosed with a mental illness. We know that a good majority of people in jails have some sort of treatable mental illness, so there is probably a whole lot more than forty percent. One of the ladies in the video stated that there was no one for the inmates to talk to for counselling. One of the men explained his childhood and how he was in foster homes, addicted to drugs at a young age, and had to grow up fighting. It is important for jails to have counsellors and trained professionals due to the high number of people with mental illnesses, poor upbringings, and addictions there and the lack of counselling just adds to the poor conditions. One of the women, Cathy, had interesting takes during her interview. She was one of the more memorable interviewees mainly due to the fact that she seemed very emotional during her interview and because she had a bachelors in criminal justice and used that degree to work with people returning to society from imprisonment. She really showed that anyone can make mistakes and go to jail. One thing she said was interesting. She said that if there was ever a fight happening between inmates, the other inmates could not interfere and try to stop the fight. If they did interfere they would be punished. I found this interesting because in the story she told one woman was being severely injured and all the others were screaming and trying to stop the fight without getting physically involved. I would think in that situation it would be instinct to jump in and get the two people away from each other, but it shows you how much imprisonment and the fear of punishment can change people’s behaviors. Most if not all of the former inmates interviewed had told of some change in their behaviors. Some had never had to fight before or did not want to fight, but in order to hold your ground in there you had to. The guards were not going to help you and prevent the violence from happening. It is definitely not okay for someone to get thrown into somewhere and fear for their safety every second and feel the need to defend themselves especially when there are people paid to guard you. Every one of the former inmates was changed the moment they stepped into Rikers Island and I am thankful that they were able to make it through and be able to share their stories. I hope there is an end to the injustice done to the inmates in that jail. -arm002
ReplyDeleteIt was really sad and heartbreaking to watch and understand what they go through. I liked how you worded your paragraph and everything you said. you made it flow and gave us a clear understanding of the video. SH002
DeleteThe lady in the video did stand out a lot because of her Bachelor's Degree in criminal justice. She made a stupid mistake that code her time away from prison and other issues. She rerouted a check of 200,000 to her account instead of someone else account for who it was meant for. She did this because her house was going into foreclosure. It’s sad to hear her story because of all the things she witnessed and experienced first hand. She was sexually assaulted in the shower and beat on. Her whole life was changed because of this. Batman002
DeleteI do agree with your comment as well. Here we have a lady whom has gone to college, done society based things that you need to do to make it in life, and by making a mistake, was put into the jail where the same people she was attempting to help, were. She then made decisions that landed here into the jail and was forced to face the same struggles with sexual abuse, mental abuse and even physiological abuse. You see them at the end of the doc, all family and even her residential family has now separated herself from her and it only makes her struggles worse on the outside.
DeleteI do agree with your comment as well. Here we have a lady whom has gone to college, done society based things that you need to do to make it in life, and by making a mistake, was put into the jail where the same people she was attempting to help, were. She then made decisions that landed here into the jail and was forced to face the same struggles with sexual abuse, mental abuse and even physiological abuse. You see them at the end of the doc, all family and even her residential family has now separated herself from her and it only makes her struggles worse on the outside. -as002
DeleteIn class, we watched a video, on Riker’s Island which was in New York, then we finished the video on our own. There were interviews with men and women who stayed at Rikers and they talked about their experiences there. Rikers island was built in 1650 and was housing over 30,000 people which included men, women, and juveniles. Out of that, about 90% were just there being detained and they were awaiting trial. This video showed the effects of mental illness and violence and how being there has changed many people. That is the thing about being in jails and prisons, there is so much fear and violence. What I got from this video was how much violence went on in Rikers. I have always known that there is violence in jails and prisons but this just gave me more insight on that. A thing that was brought up a lot by the men in the video was them explain how they had to use violence to protect themselves. The main thing that should be thought about in prisons and jails throughout the world is moving forward and getting better however staying alive and not getting beat up is the main thing many inmates think about on a daily basis while they are in there. There were many statements that were said and really stuck on me, they were; “Stand up for yourself, before someone else stands up for you.” “Show weakness, you lose. You’re gonna die.” And “Become friends with people, then find their weaknesses”. They had me stuck on them ever since they were stated in the video. We talk about abuse in jails and prisons but we don’t usually expand on it. in the video a black woman that talked about being sexually assaulted by a group of correctional officers. She stated that she was in her cell and the group of them came in and shoved her towards the back of the cell. She then stated that they pushed her panties to the side and inserted their fingers in her anus. The video said that in 2015, there were over 4,000 documented cases of “use of force” by guards. It is really upsetting that people would go into the criminal justice field for the wrong reasons. The beatings, physical assaults, and sexual assaults by the guards are one of the most inhumane things I have ever heard. Ralph Nunez suffered a concussion, brain injuries and sciatic nerve injuries based upon a beating by corrections officers and was later awarded $150,000 in a lawsuit. The story of Robert Hinton is absolutely heartbreaking. You can only gasp at the picture of his face after he was beaten by corrections officers. He was unrecognizable. He vowed to never return to prison and won $450,000 in a lawsuit. Yet he was killed in 2015 on Thanksgiving Day, days before he was set to receive the payment. Many of those that are incarcerated are set in the mind state that it is hard to be positive when all you can think about is survival. 40% of those incarcerated at Rikers return within three years. One young lady also struck my heart. Candie Haley was viciously assaulted while incarcerated at Rikers Island. She was awaiting trial and spent three years there. In May of 2015 she was acquitted of her charges. This is someone who was found not guilty of her charges and yet she endured the horrors of Riker's Island. It has to be extremely hard to serve time and be hurt for a crime you didn't commit and then try to re-enter society and resume normal life. After researching more about Rikers Island, I discovered that the New York City council is currently voting to close Rikers Island and instead have four smaller jails by 2026. This came to light when looking at the case of Kalief Browder. Kalief was sent to Rikers and jailed for 3 years for stealing a backpack. He never went to trial and was eventually released with the charges dropped. A few days after being released he committed suicide. If someone commits a crime, by law they should be punished. Now 40% if inmates in Rikers Island are mentally ill. Learning in class and even from the sheriff talking about how Peoria County has a high percent is nothing new. SH002
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ReplyDeleteRikers Island Jail is located in New York. Rikers is hell on earth, notorious for its culture of violence. On an average day, the jail is holding roughly 7,500 inmates. Out of all the inmates, around forty percent are diagnosed with a mental illness. After hearing what the people inside the jail go through, I am surprised that everyone is not suffering from some sort of mental illness. Nearly eighty percent of the people locked up, are not even convicted of a crime yet. Around half of the inmates can not afford the “low” bail set close to one-thousand dollars, due to bail laws. Upon entering the jail, it is riddled with the nasty smell of dirt and grime mixed with bleach. Everything is gray, the walls, the floor, top to bottom. The interior is described as “medieval”. Through the gates the adults can see the juveniles. Inmates are treated inhumane, the guards can and will strip search and frisk at any time in front of the others, with no absolute privacy. Not only are the inmates treated with violence and disrespect but so are the correctional officers. The employees, guards, and inmates do not get the same treated but all treated horrible in their own way. The workers at Rikers get brutally beat up, spit on, and treated badly too. Everyone is the jail is fair game when it comes to mental issues. There is nothing bigger than violence and chaos in this jail. Inmates and guards will deprive food from inmates. Either the guards are punishing them or the inmates are stealing their food and bullying them. Each house in the jail has team enforces, day room controllers, the rocking house, and day room dummies. The team enforcers, enforce the rules. The day room controllers, oversee the day room and control the activities going on. Day room dummies are the people that get walked all over, they have to ask for permission to do anything, and give up their money and things to others. If you do not “hold it down” people are going to take advantage of you. Inmates have to prove themselves to others in order to keep themselves out of harm. They have to show they can have their own back and fight for themselves.
-KF002
2 OF 2 There are fights, abuse, assult, rape, etc. Inmates know if they see a fight that they are not involved in, not to interfere. Interfering with a fight, earns an inmate a ticket. Aside from the unwanted ticket, it is also protocol not to report injuries if something does happen. Reporting things is seen as snitching and will just cause more unnecessary conflict. Rikers leaves a permanent toll on everyone who has visited, it is straining and stressful. The jail is riddled with gangs. The biggest gang is the house gang and is in the first cell of the house. The house gang gets privileges to stay up later than everyone else, till around midnight by taking care of maintenance and cleaning. While the privileged are out cleaning, everyone else is locked in their cell by ten at night. Even the correctional officers take part in gangs as the operation. The jail is a multibillion dollar industry for drugs in the city. Many of the officers are minorities. They take part in the gangs for protection or to earn extra money. Inmates and correctional officers are both “serving time”. Everything in a jail is high demand, and hard to come by, meaning people inside will pay top dollar. Many of the officers will risk bringing in cigarettes or drugs in order to make large profits for their families, or to simply keep themselves safe in the jail. In 2015, over 4,000 cases were filed by guards for “use of force”. Many inmates complained they were being tied up like roasted pigs. People are being treated so roughly, in result are suffering life-long injuries such as: bone and nerve damage, broken bones, physical and mental trauma. The only thing inmates can do to right the harm is either file for a grievance which is an absolute joke, or go all the way and file for a lawsuit. In 2015, over 3,000 people were put into punitive segregation, or solitary confinement. Solitary confinement is being locked into a small cell all alone, getting smaller food portions, never leaving the small room, going crazy, and listening to the screaming madhouse. The cells are gloomy and have maggots and roaches. It is so overwhelming that many lose their sanity. In order to keep their milk cold, they have to place it in the toilet water. The noise is unbearable, and even worse at night time. If someone dies at Rikers, the day goes on as normal. No one inside Rikers really has a set time to be held. The hardest part about leaving the joint, is feeling the a scared animal finally being let out of the cage. Sadly, around forty percent of those released will return to Rikers within three years. It is hard for these people to properly adjust back to the world. Many do not want to be around anyone or share and thoughts, because they feel a distrust. They come back feeling tense, angry, stuck, and frustrated. These people need better, inside the jail and for when they come out.
Delete-KF002
The video explain to us the viewers a broad generalization of what it is like to go to Rikers island, to live there, and about the hopes of one day leaving that place. The video touched on the intimates that had been there once upon a time and the experiences that they have seen or have been thru. In the beginning they talk about their ride on the bridge before they get to Rikers. One guy said it was day time but it felt dark. Most of them said they were hoping they make it out. It’s scary to think how they felt. You have all these people locked up in cells for numerous charges. Most people are scared, there are a few that are causing the violence in Rikers to be tough, some are even just trying to cool out till there time is up. I never understood why inmates who are jail try to bully someone else and or take stuff from other people. Everyone is there for a purpose why not try to get a long and not cause problems. Most of what happens at Rikers is senseless violence. For example, one man was on the phone with his mother and a guy came up behind him and said you can’t be on that phone. While his mother was still on the phone screaming what happened what happened her son is being sliced on the face just because he is using a phone. If I was the mother I would be scared for my son. How would someone be able to sleep at night knowing this just happened and the phone hangs up? Everyone thinks about the inmate and how it is affecting them but they also need to take in consideration of the family that this is going to effect. The families have to send money on there books and worry of that person is ok while there in there. And even if something does happen they can’t tell the guards because it is a sign of weakness in there. They even talked about being sexually assaulted while there. The inmate couldn’t even go tell them that happened to her. Which is sad because no one should be taken advantage of no matter the circumstances. It says “Nearly eighty percent of the detainees on Rikers have not been convinced of a crime. They are being held awaiting trial, sentencing, or dismissal. The average stay is less than two months but some have wait two to six years.” So out of those eighty percent of people they are probably from low income households that can't afford to bond he or she out. I never understood why they make people who are from low income neighborhoods bond smaller than most people. I feel it should match how much someone makes a year. It says “Over half the detainees can’t afford bail , often set below 1,000. “40% of the detainees have a mental illness.” Even if it’s depression, I’m sure a lot of people who are in jail or prison have it at one point in time. Some may have it before they got there or they develop it when the make it to Rikers. This one lady said she didn’t believe in taking the medication they were trying to give her while an inmate some need a shoulder to cry on. Which is true for most because they’ve probably never had someone to talk to about problems going on in there life. If some people just had that shoulder to cry on to get all that anger out then maybe violence wouldn’t happen as much as it does. It’s crazy to hear that people would run their sandwiches on the floor and eat them or the fact they would pick up roaches and eat them off the floor. In the media they try to show that jail is a rehabilitation to help prisoners turn around their lives. But how is this possible with conditions like this. Another thing that stood out to me was someone could be your friend in jail and be your enemy in the real world. Or be your friend out there and be your enemy in jail. Which i get you have to survive under those conditions. Batman002
ReplyDeleteIn this video you learn about what life is like in Rikers prison to be there and hopefully leave a place such as that. This video touched on the inmates and gave us some insight about their life behind those bars, and basically the things they have done and witnessed so in short their life. The video started with this ride over the bridge and we got to know what some of the people were thinking as they were on their way. One inmate stated "it was day but felt like night" which i interpreted as he could basically see the end of the road for him and his freedom. Like the day could symbolize his freedom and joy, and the night his regret and sorrow. It showed us how a lot of the inmates behaved while incarcerated. Some were nervous and scared, others were mellowed and just trying to get done with their sentence, then there were the bullies and the ones always stirring up commotion. These types of documentary videos will always entertain any audience because most do not know what prison is like, and those who do will get to see it from another persons point of view compared to their own. Which in turn will allow the individuals to reflect and not only become more knowledgeable for themselves but for the younger society coming up.wiseguy002
ReplyDeleteHelpless, defenseless, and terrifying, those are just a few of the type of words that were used to describe Rikers Island, a jail that was a vicious hunting ground. Many of the people who lived to tell their story from Rikers Island are traumatized from the experiences, maybe even still affected to this day. Rikers Island is missing so many key pieces that should be required for a large jail of that type. One thing this huge jail was missing was a trained staff. Rikers may have had trained staff members, but these staff members rarely did anything to help. Many of the inmates from this jail had to fear for their life, with often times no one to turn to, and the CO’s were of no help. This is a problem in a lot of prisons, but in Rikers it’s a totally different thing. There is a difference between Negligence, and improper training. The acts of these guards were clearly more on the negligent side. With guards knowing there were gangs, that took people’s commissary, and their phone time, it is scary to think that in that jail, you’re much more vulnerable to being attacked then on the streets. You had to worry about who was in front of you and behind you at all times. This place sounds scary, and awful. It’s angering to think that guards would watch people be beaten, stabbed, and taken advantage of, yet they wouldn’t do anything to stop it. Many times guards would look the other way. Another problem is within the reporting system. With these guards looking the other way, you lose the ability to report the crimes that go on. With nowhere to turn the offenders are often victimized, assaulted, and sometimes killed. This is a harsh environment for the type of offenders that are serving time in jail. Often times we forget that jail is usually meant for pretrial, low level criminals, and offenders that couldn’t post bail. This environment isn’t an environment for an innocent person awaiting trial to prove they’re innocent. Who knows if that person will be able to make it out. The Latin Kings were the top gang of Rikers Island. While the latin kings were the leaders of the jail, they oppressed everyone and took over with a dominating force. The Latin Kings were a vicious gang, with little morals, and respect for authority. Corrections only worsened the rise of the Latin Kings. The system gave them house authority, and for whatever reason let them stay out of their cells for an extra hour at night. I don’t understand how any warden of a jail or prison, could let any of this slide. These offenders were here for a reason and special treatment towards one group and not the rest is enabling them to have a power construct, and control the rest of the population. Then, along comes the rival, Brotherly Love Overrides Oppressive Destruction. This gang also known as BLOOD, was a majority black gang. The gang members spoke of this gang, as more of a family so when you went to prison you have a family to protect you in their as well. Like most gangs, BLOOD’s believed in the way to become the best was to do the worst things. The BLOODs were the minority in the jail. BLOODs were a rising popularity at Rikers Island. The cast of the movie described the CO’s as their own gang that would help the BLOOD’s, or Latin Kings, if they wanted. Slowly as the bloods became more popular the guards slowly shifted their extra stuff, like drugs, money, or extra time out of their cells to the BLOODs. Slowly the BLOODs became more appealing, and started to rise up in this system. The correctional system was problematic, because you have officers committing crimes like the offenders in the system. You have correctional officers selling drugs to inmates. At one point in the video the offender explained, that the line between inmate and CO is a very small line. Another point along the video they further explained their corruption by talking about how the officers allowed the inmate to have a key to open his window and hide his pouches of drugs. With Jorg002
ReplyDeletethis much corruption and its so consistent, it makes you wonder how long it would take to fix such a broken system, but who knows if there is a fix. Corruption was so rampant due to the pricing of these illegal drugs on Rikers Island. Almost all of the drugs were 10 times more expensive than they were on the street, making selling drugs to inmates a live changing experience, and endless potential to become more wealthy. At the time these corrections officers were drawn in, because their salary wasn’t going to make them rich, but selling that cocaine to the inmates would bring in hundreds of thousands. Correctional officers even bet on fights. They would let two people out of their cell and bet on who would win. This disgusts me, because at anytime you could become a victim and the only person who could possibly save you is the CO’s, but instead they’re too busy seeing whos gonna win the fight, since they put $10 or fifteen on your head. Use of force was another serious issue. These officers with little training, beating and overusing force against offenders, even going as far as raping some of the inmates. You often wonder how this could continue how somebody wouldn’t give in and tell someone else so they could try to make it stop, but often times in jails you have no ability to report crimes, or even get help. If you aren’t in a gang then you can expect them to help, and then the guards aren’t there to help you either. You feel alone and like you have to fight for your life. These guards didn’t just use force, they abused force, they brutally beat, almost to the cause of death. The inmates stood no chance against these correctional officers with riot shields, batons, and even walkie talkies were used as weapons against the offenders. The solitary confinement cells were very overused. Many of the people on the show talked about how they walked in it sounded like an insane asylum with all of the yelling and screaming. With solitary confinement comes hallucinations, this is enough by itself to make you go completely crazy. What’s scary is that you could be cast into one of the cells for close to nothing. Officers used discretion to throw you in a solitary cell. These solitary cells of cause true mental problems, depression, anxiety, or schizophrenia. The offenders described the CO’s beating a prisoner was like business as usual. That after someone was beaten they just went on about their day and continued. They didn’t have the ability to worry about other victims, because they go and check on that victim and who knows, they may be the next victim of the vicious COs. The freedom of getting out of this jail was so different, these people felt like they escaped slavery, or a serious gangland. One problem with readjustment back into regular society was that often times in jail they had to use violence to get what they want or to even be treated like a human. So, this created troubles when they were released from jail because they felt like they had to continue to fight for what they needed, or their only thing to resort to when faced with difficulty was physical violence. They had no help coming back to that normality. They felt helpless and like they didn’t know what to do. This shows how we need to shift our focus Jorg002
Deletetowards helping these offenders reintegrate into our community so that we can all feel happy and safe knowing that they have taken the time to come back to our community and then we can welcome them instead of being scared of them. These people often have trouble with being back in the community with almost PTSD like symptoms, feeling tense in the population. Another important piece was releasing six thousand inmates means nothing if they have nothing to come home to, no jobs, no food, no way of life. They will be turned down for any job even some mcdonalds will turn them down. We need to look for ways to reintegrate them into our community so it’s safer for everyone, and then we can decriminalize the smaller crimes. These smaller crimes become problematic, because we have everyday you and me’s rotting in jail because they couldn’t post bail on the speeding ticket they forgot to pay. We have to put work into our criminal justice system to rethink how we view the members of our society. To conclude, it’s become clear to me that Rikers Island had very many of its own problems, some we can’t fix, but what we can do is strive to help reintegrate the people back to our communities. Jorg002
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ReplyDeleteBeginning the Rikers Prison documentary, they begin to explain the journeys of separate inmates of color, stature, race, & gender. By doing so, while watching this documentary, I realized the reasoning behind that. It was to reach everyone whom was watching this documentary. Every single viewer of this video could relate, to a while suburban white female who was incarcerated, a African American female & male, people of the Spanish decent. What dealt stuck with me during this documentary was the people who were involved in the corruption of a male who was wrongfully convicted. A man whom happened to be at the wrong place, wrong time. The male in which I forgot his name, but the backstory I didn’t forget, he was walking through his neighborhood & decided to hangout at park, an officer from New York PD, stopped the male & said he fit the description of a male whom had been involved in a robbery. The officer then cuffed the male, the officer whom had seen the altercation & robbery identified the male as the one involved in the robbery, even though, that man had just entered the park & was nowhere near the incident. The male, this was his first time at Rikers Island, along with the other stories the men & women were telling, they all explained the bridge. The long bridge , making the exit & entrance to the jail, one way. Later in the documentary, a male explains how even the correctional officers are even incarcerated due to the long bridge explained in the beginning of the video. As the males & females explain the bridge , they move into the strip search that all inmates endured, the defacing of inmates. Putting this into my own perspective , I could not imagine doing that. I feel I would lose my sense of man while another man searches me. It felt the same way for all males & females, losing that sense of integrity when you walk in the door of Rikers island. Later in the documentary they explain the difference in sections of the jail. How inmates run their own housing area they have different people who run the jails. The former inmates then explain how each individual person was to follow the rules, & if they weren’t interested in doing so, then their meals, lunches, & breakfast would be taken. Including commissary, some of the males explained how they weren’t going to follow some of those rules because they wanted to do their time & be out of there. Then come the sexual assaults the men & women faced, not only from the inmate, but some from corrections which leads into the horrible things the officers did to the inmates. They bet money on inmates who fought each other. They literally beat inmates who didn’t necessarily deserve it. Some of the time, they would put inmates in a place called the box, solitary confinement.
Pt. 2 -
DeleteThis stuck with me pretty hard, due to the fact that one female explains how she assumed a grain of rice was moving & she felt as if she was going insane with a grain of rice. The female bangs on her door & tells the officer she needs to go to therapy & the officer stated “don’t worry it’s just a maggot.” More former inmates explain their encounters with the “box”. One male explains the chips of paint, that he could begin to see the paint moving. He explains that some chipped paint would begin to dance as they formed into human & that didn’t sit well with me at all. These people were being treated as if they were animals, they were forced to ration their food more than it was already being rationed. They got less food than they already did in the first place. One inmate explains how he was forced to save a piece of bread for later as if he didn’t want to eat then & there. Another inmate explains how he begins to feed & name maggots or roaches whom were in his “box”. In conclusion, they give updates on all inmates, one in which who was shot the day before his big settlement payment. Many inmates, like him received payment for their troubles and or beating the endure. Some males in which returned to Rikers Island. All of this gives me a perspective on exactly why this jail needs to be shut down. This is no longer a rehabilitation facility, this is the bottom of the barrel for people to be living in these types of conditions & it is absolutely horrible. -as002
The video about Rikers Island that we watched in class was very moving; furthermore, I found the interviews of men and women who had been kept Rikers to be heartbreaking yet a great way to really put into perspective what being imprisoned there was like. Built in 1650, Rikers Island once had a population of more than 30,000 inmates, and it has nearly 10,000 beds. A lot of very sad facts were stated in this video like how 80% of the detainees were not convicted of a crime and were simply awaiting trial. Half of this population could not afford the bail which was posted at under $1000 either. One of the most common stories told by the men was about “getting with the program” or dealing with the “head of the house. Everything has to be fought for in prison. A man who was only 14 when he first went to Rikers said he was asked for his sneakers and he just gave them up, but he was immediately beaten up for showing weakness and his own friend, who was in with him, just stood away and let it happen. His friend knew that he could not help him if he wanted to keep his status and respect. Some went in just feeling the instinctual desire for dominance and knew that they had to immediately show a toughness and willingness to fight. A lot of correctional officers just allowed this to happen and only stopped it before it got too out of hand. The officers just knew, even though it is not right, that it was the way the prisoners kept a “status quo” of sorts. Showing no fear is extremely important in prison or you will immediately be walked all over and taken advantage of. The New York Times has thankfully reported City Council voted that by 2026 Rikers Island will be shut down and four jails spread throughout New York will take its place. The closing will cost about $8 billion dollars to accomplish. What I got from this video was how much violence went on in Rikers. I am very for this movement; however, the citizens of New York are not completely pleased with the locations of the four new jails to be built. They all take place within the different cities by local places, such as stores and next to City Hall. Rikers has been around and abusing its inmates for far too long and I can only hope that the closing and relocating will be successful. -Gamma002
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